MIK    UM    WESS, 

THE   INDIAN    TUCK,  OR   ROHIN   GOOD-FELLOW. 

From  a  serapiug  on  birch  bark  by  Tomnli  Josephs,  Indian  Governor  at  Pete* 

Dana's  Poiftt,  Maine.     The  Mik  vm  luess  always  wears  a 

red  Clip  like  the  Xorse  Goblin. 


THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS 
OF  NEW  ENGLAND 


OR 


Mytbs  and  Folk  Lore  oftbe  Micmac,  Passa- 
maqnodiiy,  and  Penobscot  Tribes 


BY 


CHARLES   G.  LELAND 


■^>^-. 


BOSTON 
HOUGHTON,  MIFFLIN  AND  COMPANY 

New  York:    11    East   Seventeenth   Street 

1SS4 


Copyright,  1884, 
Bt  CUARLES  a.  LELAND. 


All  riyhts  reserved. 


3CC4u 


The  Rfversifte  Press,  Cambrideie: 
Electrotyped  and  Printed  by  H.  0.  Houghton  &  Co. 


PREFACE. 


When  I  began,  in  the  summer  of  1882,  to  collect 
among  the  Pussamaquoddy  Indians  at  Campobello,  New 
Brunswick,  their  traditions  and  folk-lore,  I  expected 
to  find  very  little  indeed.  These  Indians,  few  in 
number,  surrounded  by  white  people,  and  thoroughly 
converted  to  Roman  Catholicism,  promised  but  scanty 
remains  of  heathenism.  What  was  my  amazement, 
however,  at  discovering,  day  by  day,  that  there  existed 
among  them,  entirely  by  oral  tradition,  a  far  gi'ander 
mythology  than  that  which  has  been  made  known 
to  us  by  either  the  Cliippewa  or  Iroquois  Hiawatha 
Legends,  and  that  this  was  illustrated  by  an  incredible 
number  of  tales.  I  soon  ascertained  that  these  were 
very  ancient.  The  old  people  declared  that  they  had 
heai  d  from  their  progenitors  that  all  of  these  stories 
were  once  sung;  that  they  themselves  remembered 
when  many  of  them  were  poems.  This  was  fully 
proved  by  discovering  manifest  traces  of  poetry  in 
many,  and  finally  by  receiving  a  long  Micmac  tale 
which  had  been  sung  by  an  Indian.  I  fo'uid  that  all 
the  relaters  of  this  lore  were  positive  as  to  the  an- 
tiquity of  the  narratives,  and  distinguished  accurately 


iv  PREFACE. 

between  what  was  or  was  not  pre-Colnni])ian.  In  fact, 
I  came  in  time  to  the  opinion  that  the  original  stock 
of  all  the  Algoncpiin  myths,  and  porliaps  of  many 
more,  still  existed,  not  far  away  in  the  AVest,  but  at 
our  very  doors  ;  that  is  to  say,  in  Maine  and  New 
Brunswick.  It  is  at  least  certain,  as  the  reader  may 
convince  himself,  that  these  AVabanaki,  or  North- 
eastern Algonquin,  legends  give,  wi^^h  few  exceptions, 
in  full  and  coherently,  many  tahis  .viiich  have  only 
reached  us  in  a  broken,  imperfect  fonu,  from  other 
sources. 

This  work,  then,  contains  a  collection  of  the  myths, 
legends,  and  folk-lore  of  the  principal  Wabanaki,  or 
Northeastern  Algonquin,  Indians ;  that  is  to  say,  of 
the  Passamaquoddies  and  Penobscots  of  Maine,  and 
of  the  Micmacs  of  New  Brunswick.  All  of  this  mate- 
rial was  gathered  directly  from  Indian  narrators,  the 
greater  part  by  myself,  the  rest  by  a  few  friends ;  in 
fact,  I  can  give  the  name  of  the  aboriginal  authority 
for  every  tale  except  one.  As  my  chief  object  iias 
been  simply  to  collect  and  preserve  valuable  material, 
I  have  said  little  of  the  labors  of  such  critical  writers 
as  Brinton,  Hale,  Trumbull,  Powers,  Morgan,  Ban- 
croft, and  the  many  more  who  have  so  ably  studied 
and  set  forth  red  Indian  ethnology.  If  I  have  rarely 
ventured  on  their  field,  it  is  because  I  believe  that 
when  the  Indian  shall  have  passed  away  there  will 
come  far  better  ethnologists  than  I  am,  who  will  be 
much  more  obliged  to  me  for  collecting  raw  material 
than  for  cooking  it. 


PREFACE.  y 

Two  or  three  subjects  have,  it  is  true,  tempted  me 
into  occasional  coinnienting.  The  manifest,  I  may  say 
the  undeniable,  affinity  between  the  myths  and  legends 
of  tlie  Northeastern  Indians  and  those  of  the  Eskimo 
could  hardly  be  passed  over,  nor  at  the  same  time 
the  identity  of  the  latter  and  of  the  Shaman  religion 
with  those  of  the  Finns,  Laplanders,  and  Samoyedes. 
I  believe  that  I  have  contributed  material  not  devoid 
of  value  to  those  who  are  interested  in  the  study  of 
the  relations  of  the  aborigines  of  America  with  the 
Mongoloid  races  of  the  Old  World.  This  is  a  subject 
which  has  been  very  little  studied  through  the  rela- 
tions of  these  Wabanaki  with  the  Eskimo. 

A  far  more  hazardous  venture  has  been  the  indicat- 
ing points  of  similarity  between  the  myths  or  tales  of 
the  Algonquins  and  those  of  the  Norsemen,  as  set 
forth  in  the  Eddas,  the  Sagas,  and  popular  tales  of 
Scandinavia.  When  we,  however,  remember  that  the 
Eskimo  once  ranged  as  far  south  as  iSIassachusetts, 
that  they  did  not  reach  Greenland  till  the  fourteenth 
century,  that  they  had  for  three  centuries  intinuito 
relations  with  Scandinavians,  that  they  were  very 
fond  of  legends,  and  that  the  Wabanaki  even  now 
mingle  with  them,  the  marvel  would  be  that  the 
Norsemen  had  not  left  among  them  traces  of  their 
tales  or  of  their  religion.  But  I  do  not  say  that  this 
was  positively  the  case ;  I  simply  set  forth  in  this 
book  a  great  number  of  curious  coincidences,  from 
which  others  may  draw  their  own  conclusions.  I 
confess  that  I  cannot  account  for  these  resemblances 


vi  PREFACE. 

save  by  the  so-called  "historical  theory"  of  direct 
transmission;  hut  if  any  one  can  otherwise  explain 
them  1  should  welcome  the  solution  of  what  still  seems 
to  be,  in  many  resjoects,  a  problem. 

I  am,  in  fact,  of  the  opinion  that  what  is  given 
in  this  work  confirms  what  was  conjectured  by  David 
Crantz,  and  which  is  thus  expressed  in  his  History 
of  Greenland  (London,  17G7)  :  "  If  we  read  the  ac- 
counts which  have  been  given  of  the  most  northerly 
American  Indians  and  Asiatic  Tartars,  we  find  a 
pretty  great  resemblance  between  their  manner  of 
life,  morals,  usages,  and  notions  and  what  has  been 
said  in  this  book  of  the  Greenlanders,  only  with  this 
difference :  that  the  farther  the  savage  nations  wan- 
dered towards  the  North,  the  fewer  they  retained 
of  their  ancient  conceptions  and  customs.  As  for  the 
Greenlanders,  if  it  be  true,  as  is  supposed,  that  a 
remnant  of  the  old  Norway  Christians  incorporated 
themselves  and  became  one  people  with  them,  the 
Greenlanders  may  thence  have  heard  and  adopted 
some  of  their  notions,  which  they  may  have  new- 
modeled  in  the  coarse  mould  of  their  own  brain." 

Among  those  who  have  gi'eatly  aided  me  in  pre- 
paring this  work  I  deem  it  to  be  a  duty  to  mention 
Miss  Abby  Alger,  of  Boston,  to  whom  it  is  cordially 
dedicated ;  the  Rev.  Silas  T.  Rand,  of  Ilantsport, 
Nova  Scotia,  who  lent  me  a  manuscript  collection  of 
eighty-five  Micniac  tales,  and  connuunicated  to  me, 
with  zealous  kindness,  much  information  by  letter; 
and  Mrs.  W.  Wallace  Brown,  of  Calais,  Maine.    It 


PREFA  CE.  vii 

was  tlirough  this  lady  that  I  derived  a  great  proportion 
of  the  most  curious  folk-lore  of  the  Passamaquoddies, 
esjiccially  such  parts  as  coincided  with  the  Edda. 
With  these  I  would  include  Mr.  E.  Jack,  of  Freder- 
icton,  New  Brunswick.  When  it  is  remembered  that 
there  are  only  forty-two  of  the  Hiawatha  Legends  of 
Schoolcraft,  out  of  which  five  books  have  been  made 
by  other  authors,  and  that  I  have  collected  more 
than  two  hundred,  it  will  be  seen  how  these  friends 
must  have  worked  to  aid  me. 


AUTHORITIES. 


The  authorities  consulted  in  writing  this  work  were  as  fol- 
lows :  — 

PERSONS. 

Tomah  Josephs,  Passaniaquoddy,  Indian  Governor  at  Peter 
Dana's  Point,  Maine. 

Tlic  Rov.  Silas  T.  Rand,  Baptist  Missionary  among  the  Mic- 
mac  Indians  at  Ilantsport,  Nova  Seotia.  Tliis  gentleman  lent 
me  his  manuscript  collection  of  eighty-five  stories,  all  taken 
down  from  verhal  Indian  narration.  He  also  comnmnioated 
much  information  in  letters,  etc. 

John  Gabriel,  and  his  son  Peter  J,  Gabriel,  Passaniaquoddy  In- 
dians, of  Point  Pleasant,  Maine. 

Noel  Josephs,  of  Peter  Dana's  Point,  alias  Che  gach  goch,  the 
Raven. 

Joseph  Tomah,  Passaniaquoddy,  of  Point  Pleasant. 

Louis  Mitchell,  Indian  member  of  the  Legislature  of  Maine. 
To  this  gentleman  I  am  greatly  indebted  for  manuscripts,  letters, 
and  oral  narrations  of  great  value. 

Sapiel  Selmo,  keeper  of  the  Wampum  Record,  formerly  read 
ever}'  four  years  at  the  kindling  of  the  great  fire  at  Canawagha. 

Marie  Saksis,  of  Oldtown,  a  capital  and  very  accurate  narrator 
of  many  traditions. 

Miss  Al>by  Alger,  of  Boston,  by  whom  I  was  greatly  aided  m 
collecting  the  Passaniaquoddy  stories,  and  who  obtained  several 
for  me  among  the  St.  Francis  or  Abenaki  Indians. 

Edward  Jack,  of  Fredericton,  for  several  Micmac  legends 
and  many  letters  containing  folk-lore,  all  taken  down  by  him 
directly  from  Indians. 

Mrs.  W.  Wallace  Brown.    Mr.  Brown  was  agent  in  charge  of 


X  AUTHORITIES. 

tho  Passamaqiioddics  in  Maine.     To  this  lady,  who  lias  a  p^rcat 
influence  over  the  Indians,  and  is  much  interested  in  their  folk- 
lore and  legends,  I  am  indebted  for  a  large  collection  of  very  in- 
teresting material  of  the  most  varied  description. 
Noel  Neptune,  Penobscot,  Oldtown,  Maine. 

BOOKS,    MANUSCRIPTS,   ETC. 

The  Story  of  Glooskap.  A  curious  manuscript  in  Indian-Eng- 
lish, obtained  for  me  by  Tomah  Josephs. 

The  Dominion  Monthly  for  1871.  Containing  nine  Micmac  le- 
gends by  Rev.  S.  T.  Hand. 

Indian  Legends.  (^lanuscrlpt  of  900  pp.  folio.)  Collected 
anunig  the  Micmac  Indians,  and  translated  by  Silas  T.  Hand, 
Missionary  to  the  Micmacs. 

A  Manuscript  ColUction  of  Passamaqnoddy  Legendc  and  Folk- 
Lore.  By  Mrs.  W.  Wallace  Brown,  of  Calais,  Maine.  These  are 
all  given  with  the  greatest  accuracy  as  narrated  by  Indians,  some 
in  broken  Indian-English.  They  embrace  a  very  great  variety  of 
folk-lore. 

Manuscript  Fairy  Tales  in  Indian  and  English.  By  Louis 
Mitchell. 

Manuscript:  The  Superstitions  of  the  Passainaquoddies.  In 
Indian  and  English. 

A  History  of  the  Passamaquoddy  Indians.  Manuscript  of  80 
pages,  Indian  and  English.  All  of  these  were  written  for  me 
by  L.  Mitchell,  M.  L. 

Wampum  Records.  Read  for  me  by  Sapiel  Selmo,  the  only  liv- 
ing Indian  who  has  the  key  to  them. 

David  Cusick's  Sketches  of  Ancient  History  of  the  Six  Nations. 
Loekport,  N.  Y.,  1848.     Printed,  but  written  in  Indian- ICnglish. 

Manuscript :  Six  Stories  of  the  St.  Francis  or  Abenaki  Indians. 
Taken  down  by  Miss  Abby  Alger. 

Osgood's  Maritime  Provinces.  In  this  work  there  are  seven 
short  extracts  relative  to  Glooskap  given  without  reference  to  any 
book  or  author. 


CONTENTS. 


TAOE 

Introduction 1 

Glooskap,  thk  Divinity. 

Of  Glooskap's  Birth,  and  of  his  Brother  Malsuin,  the 
Wolf 15 

IIow  Glooskap  made  the  Elves  and  Fairies,  and  then  Man 
of  an  Ash-Tree,  and  last  of  all  the  Beasts,  and  of  his 
Coming  at  the  Last  Day        .         ,         .         .         .         .18 

Of  the  Great  Deeds  which  Glooskap  did  for  Men;  how 
he  named  the  Animals,  and  who  they  were  that  formed 
his  Family 28 

How  Win-pe,  the  Sorcerer,  having  stolen  Glooskap's  Fam- 
ily, was  by  him  pursued.  IIow  Glooskap  for  a  Merry 
Jest  cheated  the  Whale.  Of  the  Song  of  the  Clams, 
and  how  the  Whale  smoked  a  Pipe        .         .         .         .31 

Of  the  Dreadful  Deeds  of  the  Evil  Pitcher,  who  was  both 
Man  and  Woman  ;  how  she  fell  in  Love  with  Glooskap, 
and,  being  scorned,  became  his  Enemy.  Of  the  Toads 
and  Porcupines,  and  the  Awful  Buttle  of  the  Giants      .     36 

J  low  the  Story  of  Glooskap  and  Pook-jin-skwess,  the  Evil 
Pitcher,  is  told  by  the  Passamacjuoddy  Indians      .         .     44 

IIow  Glooskap  became  friendly  to  the  Loons,  and  made 
them  his  Messengers .     50 

How  Glooskap  made  his  Uncle  Mikchich,  the  Turtle,  into 
a  Great  Man,  and  got  him  a  Wife.  Of  the  Turtles' 
Eggs,  and  how  Glooskap  vanquished  a  Sorcerer  by 
smoking  Tobacco   ........    51 


xii  CONTENTS. 

How  Glooskap  sailed  through  the  Groat  Cavern  of  Dark- 
ness        59 

Of  the  Great  Works  which  Glooskap  made  in  the  Land    .     62 

The  Story  of  Glooskap  as  told  in  a  few  Words  by  a  Woman 
of  the  Pcnobscots  .......     G5 

How  Glooskap,  leaving  the  World,  all  the  Animals 
mourned  for  liim,  and  how,  ere  he  departed,  he  gave 
Gifts  to  Men 60 

How  Glooskap  had  a  Great  Frolic  with  Kitpooseagunow, 
a  Mighty  Giant  who  caught  a  Whale     .         .         .         .74 

How  Glooskap  made  a  Magician  of  a  Young  Man,  who 
aided  another  to  win  a  Wife  and  do  Wonderful  Deeds  .     81 

How  a  certain  Wicked  Witch  sought  to  cajole  the  Great 
and  Good  Glooskap,  and  of  her  Punishment  .         .     92 

Of  other  Men  who  went  to  Glooskap  for  Gifts  .         .94 

Of  Glooskap  and  the  three  other  Seekers         .         .         .98 

Of  Glooskap  and  the  Sinful  Serpent         ....  104 

Tlie  Tale  of  Glooskap  as  told  by  another  Tndian,  showing 
how  the  Toad  and  Porcupine  lost  their  Noses         .         .  106 

How  Glooskap  changed  Certain  Saucy  Indians  into  Rattle- 
snakes    110 

How  Glooskap  bound  Wuchowscn,  the  Great  Wind-Bird, 
and  made  all  the  Waters  in  the  World  stagnant    .         .111 

How  Glooskap  con(piered  the  Great  Bull- Frog,  and  in 
what  Manner  all  the  Pollywogs,  Crabs,  Leeches,  and 
other  Water  Creatures  were  created      .         .         .         .114 

How  the  Lord  of  Men  and  Beasts  strove  with  the  Mighty 
Wasis,  and  was  shamefully  defeated      ....  120 

How  the  Great  Glooskap  fought  the  Giant  Sorcerers  at 
Saco,  and  turned  them  into  Fish 122 

How  Glooskap  went  to  England  and  France,  and  was  the 
first  to  make  America  known  to  tlie  Europeans      .         .  127 

How  Glooskap  is  making  Arrows,  and   preparing   for  a 

Great  Battle.     The  Twilight  of  tlie  Indian  Gods  .         .  130 
How  Glooskap  found  the  Summer 134 


CONTENTS.  xiu 

The  Merry  Tales  of  Lox,  the  Mischief-Maker. 

The  Surprising  and  Singular  Adventures  of  two  Water 
Fairies  who  were  also  Weasels,  and  how  they  each  be- 
came the  Bride  of  a  Star.  Including  the  Mysterious 
and  Wonder  fid  Works  of  Lox,  the  Great  Indian  Devil, 
who  rose  Ironi  the  Dead         ......  140 

Of  the  Wolverine  and  the  Wolves,  or  how  Master  Lox 
froze  to  Death       .         .         .         .         .         .         .         .170 

How  Master  Lox  played  a  Trick  on  Mrs.  Bear,  who  lost 
her  Eyesight  and  had  her  I^yes  opened  ....  174 

How  Lox  came  to  Grief  hy  trying  to  catch  a  Salmon        .  179 

How  Master  Lox,  as  a  Raccoon,  killed  the  Bear  and  the 
Black  Cats,  and  performed  other  Xotable  Feats  of  Skill, 
all  to  his  Great  Discredit       ......  180 

How  Lox  deceived  the  Ducks,  cheated  the  Cliief,  and  be- 
guiled the  Bear      ........  18G 

The  Mischief-Maker.  A  Tradition  of  the  Origin  of  the 
Mythology  of  the  Senecas.     A  Lox  Legend  .         .  194 

How  Lox  told  a  Lie  ........  20G 

The  Amazing  Adventures  of  Mastef  Rabbit. 

How  Master  Rabbit  sought  to  rival  Keeoony,  the  Otter       208 

How  Mahtigwess,  the  Rabbit,  dined  with  the  Woodpecker 
Girls,    and    was    agahi    Inunbled    by    trying    to   rival 
them 210 

Of  the  Adventure  with  Mooin,  the  Bear;  it  being  the  Third 
and  Last  Time  that  Master  Rabbit  made  a  Fool  of 
himself 212 

Relating  how  the  Rabbit  became  Wise  by  being  Original, 
and  of  the  Terribh*  Tricks  which  he  by  Magic  played 
Loup-Cervier,  the  Wicked  Wild-Cat    .         .         .         .213 

How  Master  Rabbit  went  to  a  Wedding  and  won  the 
Bride 223 

How  Master  Rabbit  gave  himself  Airs      ....  225 

The  Young  Man  who  was  saved  by  a  Rabbit  and  a  Fox    .  227 


XIV  CONTENTS. 

The  Chenoo  Legends. 

The  Chenoo,  or  the  Story  of  a  Cannibal  with  an  Icy  Heart  233 
The  Story  of  the  Great  Chenoo,  as  told  by  the  Piissama- 

quoddies 246 

The  Giil-Chenoo 251 

Thunder  Stouies. 

Of  the  Girl  who  married  Mount  Katahdin,  and  how  all 

the  Indians  brought  about  their  own  Ruin     .         .         .  255 
How  a  Hunter  visited  the  Thunder  Spirits  who  dwell  on 

Mount  Katahdin 259 

The  Thunder  and  Lightning  Men      .....  263 
Of  the  Woman  who  married  the  Thunder,  and  of  their 

Boy 266 

At-o-sis,  the  Serpent. 

How  Two  Girls  were  changed  to  Water-Snakes,  and  of 
Two  others  that  became  Mermaids        ....  268 

Ne  Hwas,  the  Mermaid 270 

Of  the  Woman  who  loved  a  Serpent  that  lived  in  a  Lake  .  273 

The  Mother  of  Serpents 275 

Origin  of  the  Black  Snakes 278 

The  Partridge. 

The  Adventures  of  the  Great  Hero  Pulowech,  or  the  Par- 
tridge     281 

The  Story  of  a  Partridge  and  his  Wonderful  Wigwam     .  290 
How  the  Partridge  built  Good  Canoes  for  all  the  Birds, 

and  a  Bjul  One  for  Himself 293 

The  Mournful  Mystery  of  the  Partridge- Witch  ,  setting 

forth  how  a  Young  Man  died  from  Love        .         .         .  295 
How  one  of  the  Partridge's  Wives  became  a  Sheldrake 
Duck,  and  why  her  Feet  and  Feathers  are  red       .         .  300 

The  Invisihle  One 303 

Story  of  the  Three  Strong  Men 311 

The  Weewillmekq'. 

How  a  Woman  lost  a  Gim  for  Fear  of  the  Weewillmekq' .  324 


CONTENTS. 


XV 


Muggahmaht'adem,  the  Dance  of  Old  Age,  or  the  Magic 
of  the  Weewillniekq'     .......  327 

Another  Version  of  the  Dance  of  Old  Age       .         .         .  330 
Tales  of  Magic. 

M'tdouliu,  or  Indian  Magic 334 

Story  of  the  Beaver  Trapper    ......  342 

How  a  Yonth  became  a  Magician 343 

Of  Old  Joe,  the  M'teoalin ;V45 

Of  Governor  Francis 345 

IIow  a  Chief's  Son  taught  his  Friend  Sorcery  .         .         .  352 
Tnmilkoontaoo,  or  the  Broken  Wing        ....  359 

Fish-IIawk  and  Scapegrace 3G3 

The  Giant  Magicians 3G8 


LIST  OF  ILLUSTRATIONS. 


-♦— — 

PAOC 


MiK    UM    WKSS,    THE    INDIAN    PuCK,    OR    RoBIN   GoOD-FeL- 

LOW Fnmtbipiece. 

Glooskap  killing  his  Bkothek,  the  Wolf 17 

Glooskap  looking  at  the  Whale  smoking  his  Pipe  .  35 
Glooskap  setting  his  Dogs  on  the  Witches  ....  40 
The  Mud-Turtle  jumping  over  the  Wigwam  of  his 

Father-in-Law 54 

Glooskap  and  Keanke  spearing  the  Whale  ...  75 
Glooskap  turning  a  Man  into  a  Cedar-Tree    ...    98 

lox  carried  off  by  culloo 157 

The  Indian  Hoy  and  the  Musk-Rat.     Seeps,  the  Duck  192 

The  Rabbit  Magician 214 

The  Chenoo  and  the  Lizard 237 

The  Woman  and  the  Serpent 274 


INTKODUCTION. 


A,MON(;  tlio  six  chief  divisions  of  the  red  Indians 
of  North  America  the  most  widely  extended  is  the  Al- 
gonquin. Tliis  ])e()ple  ranged  from  Labrador  to  the 
far  South,  from  Newfoundland  to  the  Koeky  IMoun- 
tains,  S])eaking  forty  dialects,  as  the  lion.  »J.  II. 
Trumbull  has  shown  in  his  valuable  work  on  the  sub- 
ject. Belonging  to  this  divison  are  the  Micmacs  of 
New  Brunswick  and  the  Passama([uod(ly  and  Penob- 
scot tribes  of  Maine,  who  with  the  St.  Francis  Indians 
of  Canada  and  some  smaller  clans  call  themselves  the 
Wal)anaki,  a  word  derived  from  a  root  signifyinj^ 
white  or  light,  intimating  that  they  live  nearest  to  the 
rising  sun  or  the  east.  In  fact,  the  rrench-s[)eaking' 
St.  Francis  family,  who  are  known  ^*ar  6m'uviiwe  as 
"the  Abenaki,"  translate  the  term  hy 2)ohit  chi  jour. 

The  Wabanaki  have  in  connnon  the  traditions  of 
a  grand  mythology,  the  central  figure  of  which  is  a 
demigod  or  hero,  who,  while  he  is  always  great,  con- 
sistent, and  benevolent,  and  never  devoid  of  dignity, 
])i'csents  traits  which  are  very  nnich  more  like  those  of 
Odin  and  Thor,  with  not  a  little  of  Pantagrnol,  than 
anything  in  the  characters  of  the  Chippewa  Alano- 
bozho,  or  the  Iroquois  Hiawatha.     The  name  of  this 


2  INTRODUCTION. 

divinity  is  Gloo.skap,  meaning,  strangely  enough,  the 
Liar,  because  it  is  said  that  wlien  he  left  earth,  like 
King  Arthur,  for  Fairyland,  he  promised  to  return, 
and  has  never  done  so.  It  is  characteristic  of  tho 
Norse  gods  that  wliile  they  are  grand  they  are  manly, 
and  combine  with  this  a  peculiarly  domestic  humanity. 
Glooskap  is  the  Norse  god  intensified,  lie  is,  how- 
ever, more  of  a  giant ;  he  grows  to  a  more  appalling 
greatness  than  Thor  or  Odin  in  his  battles  ;  wlien  a 
Kimoacpi\  or  Jotun,  rises  to  the  clouds  to  oppose 
him,  Glooskap's  head  touches  the  stars,  and  scorning 
to  slay  so  mean  a  foe  like  an  equal,  he  kills  him  con- 
temptuously with  a  light  tap  of  his  bow.  But  in  the 
family  circle  he  is  the  most  benevolent  of  gentle 
heroes,  and  has  his  oft-repeated  little  standard  jokes. 
Yet  he  never,  like  the  Manobozho-Hiawatha  of  the 
Chippewas,  becomes  silly,  cruel,  or  fantastic.  He  has 
his  roaring  revel  with  a  brother  giant,  even  as  Thor 
went  fishing  in  fierce  fun  with  the  frost  god,  but  he  is 
never  low  or  feeble. 

Around  Glooskap,  who  is  by  far  the  grandest  and 
most  Aryan-like  character  ever  evolved  from  a  sav- 
age mind,  and  who  is  more  congenial  to  a  reader 
of  Shakespeare  and  Rabelais  than  any  deity  ever 
imagined  out  of  Europe,  there  are  found  strange 
giants  :  some  literal  J  otuns  of  stone  and  ice,  sorcerers 
who  become  giants  like  Glooskaj),  at  will ;  the  terrible 
Chenoo,  a  human  being  with  an  icy-stone  heart,  who 
has  sunk  to  a  caiinibid  and  glioul ;  all  the  weird  mon- 
sters and  horrors  of  the  Eskimo  mythology,  witches 


INTIIODUCTIOX,  8 

and  (lomons,  inhoritcd  from  the  terribly  black  sorcery 
which  prtsceded  IShanianism,  and  C()inj)ared  to  which 
the  latter  waH  like  an  advanced  religion,  and  all  the 
minor  mythology  of  dwarfs  and  fairies.  The  Indian 
rn'tSouUn^  or  magician,  distinctly  taught  that  every 
created  thing,  animate  or  inanimate,  had  its  indwelling 
8i)irit.  Whatever  had  an  idea  had  a  soid.  Therefore 
the  Wabanaki  mythology  is  strangely  like  that  of  the 
Kosicrucians.  But  it  created  spirits  for  the  terrible 
Arctic  wfnters  of  the  north,  for  the  icebergs  and  frozen 
wastes,  for  the  Northern  Liglits  and  polar  bears.  It 
made,  in  short,  a  mythology  such  as  would  be  perfectly 
congenial  to  any  one  who  has  read  and  understood  the 
Edda,  Beowulf,  and  the  Kalevala,  with  the  wildest 
and  oldest  Norse  sagas.  But  it  is,  as  regards  spirit 
and  meaning,  utterly  and  entirely  unlike  anytliing  else 
that  is  American.  It  is  not  like  the  Mexican  pan- 
theon ;  it  has  not  the  same  sounds,  colors,  or  feelings ; 
and  though  many  of  its  incidents  or  tales  are  the 
same  as  those  of  the  Cliippewas,  or  other  tribes,  we 
still  feel  that  there  is  an  incredible  difference  in  the 
spirit.  Its  ways  are  not  as  their  ways.  This  Waba- 
naki mythology,  which  was  that  which  gave  a  fairy,  an 
elf,  a  naiad,  or  a  hero  to  every  rock  and  river  and 
ancient  hill  in  New  P^ngland,  is  just  the  one  of  all 
others  which  is  least  known  to  the  New  Englanders. 
When  the  last  Indian  shall  be  in  his  grjive,  those  who 
come  after  us  will  ask  in  wonder  whv  we  had  no 
curiosity  as  to.  the  romance  of  our  countfy,  and  so 
much  as  to  that  of  every  other  land  on  earth. 


4  INThODUCTlON. 

Much  is  allowed  to  ])oct.s  and  jiai liters,  and  no  fault 
was  found  with  Mr.  Longfellow  for  attributing-  to  tlio 
Ir()(|uoi.s  Hiawatha  the  choice  exploits  of  the  Chip- 
pewa denii-devil  Manobozho.  It  was  "  all  Indian  "  to 
the  multitude,  and  one  name  answered  as  well  in 
poet-'y  as  another,  at  a  time  when  there  was  very  little 
attention  paid  to  ethnology.  So  that  a  good  poem 
resulted,  it  was  of  little  consequence  that  the  i)lot  was 
a  mC'laufje  of  very  dilferent  characters,  and  character- 
istics. And  when,  in  connection  with  this,  Mr.  Long- 
fellow spoke  of  the  Chippewa  tales  as  forming  an 
Indian  Edda,  the  term  was  doubtless  in  a  poetic  and 
very  general  sense  permissible.  But  its  want  of  literal 
trutli  seems  to  have  deeply  impressed  the  not  generally 
over  particular  or  accurate  Schoolcraft,  since  his  first 
remarks  in  the  Introduction  to  the  Hiawatha  Legends 
are  as  follows :  — 

"  Where  analogies  are  so  general,  there  is  a  constant 
liability  to  mistakes.  Of  these  foreign  analogies  of 
myth-lore,  the  least  tangible,  it  is  believed,  is  that  wliich 
has  been  suggested  with  the  Scandinavian  mythology. 
That  mythology  is  of  so  marked  and  peculiar  a  char- 
acter that  it  has  not  been  distinctly  traced  out  of  the 
great  circle  of  tribes  of  the  Indo-Germauic  family. 
Odin  and  his  terrific  pantheon  of  war  gods  and  social 
deities  could  only  exist  in  the  dreary  latitudes  of 
storms  and  fire  which  produce  a  Ilecla  and  a  Mael- 
strom. Those  latitudes  have  invariably  produced  na- 
tions who!?e  inliuence  has  been  felt  in  an  elevating 
power  over  the  world.    From  such  a  source  the  Indian 


INTRODUCTION.  5 

could  have  derived  none  of  liis  vague  aymlmlisms  and 
mental  idiosyncijiHies  whieh  have  left  hiui  as  ho  i.s  found 
to-day,  without  a  government  and  without  a  god." 

This  is  all  jjei'feetly  true  of  the  myths  of  lliawat'lia- 
Manoho/ho.  Nothing  on  earth  (ionld  be  more  mdike 
the  Norso  legemls  than  the  "Indian  Kdda "  of  the 
Chippewas  and  Ottawas.  Ihit  it  was  not  known  to 
this  writer  that  tliere  already  existed  in  Northeast- 
ern Ameri(!a  a  stui)endous  mythology,  derived  from 
a  land  of  storms  and  fire  more  terrible  and  wonderful 
than  Iceland  ;  nay,  so  terrible  that  Icelanders  tiiem- 
selves  were  a})})alled  by  it.  "  This  eountry,"  says  the 
A\)\)6i  Morillot,  "  is  the  one  most  suggestive  of  su- 
perstition. Everything  there,  sea,  earth,  or  heaven,  is 
strange."  The  wild  cries  which  rise  from  the  dejjths  of 
the  caverned  ice-hills,  and  are  reuchoed  by  the  rocks, 
icebergs,  or  waves,  wei-e  dreadful  to  Egbert  Olaf- 
son  in  the  seventeenth  century.  The  interior  is  a  des- 
ert without  parallel  for  desolation.  A  frozen  Sahara 
seen  by  Northern  lightning  and  midnight  suns  is  but  a 
suggestion  of  this  land.  The  sober  Moravian  mission- 
ary Crantz  once  only  in  his  life  rose  to  poetry,  wlion 
more  than  a  century  ago  he  spoke  of  its  scenery.  Hero 
then  was  the  latitude  of  storm  and  fire  required  by 
Schoolcraft  to  i)roduce  something  wilder  and  grander 
than  he  had  ever  found  among  Indians.  And  here 
indeed  there  existed  all  the  time  a  cycle  of  mytho- 
logical legends  or  poems  such  as  he  declared  Indians 
incapable  of  producing.  But  strangest  of  all,  this 
American  mythology  of  the  North,  which  has  been  the 


b  INTRODUCTION. 

very  last  to  become  known  to  American  readers,  is 
literally  so  nearly  like  the  Edda  itself  that,  as  tliis 
worlc  fully  proves,  there  is  hardly  a  song  in  the  Norse 
collection  which  does  not  contain  an  incident  found  in 
the  Indian  poeui-legends,  while  in  several  there  are 
many  such  coincidences.  Thus,  in  tlie  Edda  we  are 
told  that  the  first  birth  on  earth  was  that  of  a  giant 
girl  and  boy,  begotten  by  the  feet  of  a  giant  and  l)orn 
from  his  arm})it.  In  the  Wabanaki  legends,  the  first 
birth  was  of  Glooskap,  the  Good  })rinciple,  and  Malsum 
the  Wolf,  or  Evil  i)rinciple.  The  Wolf  was  born  from 
his  mother's  armpit.  lie  is  sometimes  male  and  some- 
times f  male.  His  feet  are  male  and  female,  and  con- 
verse. We  pass  on  only  twelve  lines  in  the  Edda 
(Vafthrudnismal,  3G)  to  be  told  that  the  wind  is 
caused  by  a  giant  in  eagle's  plumage,  who  sits  on  a 
rock  far  in  the  north  "  at  the  end  of  heaven."  This  is 
sim])ly  and  literall;y  the  Wochowsen  or  Windblower 
of  the  Wabanaki  word  for  word,  —  not  the  "  Thunder- 
Bird  "  of  the  Western  Indians.  The  second  birth  on 
earth,  according  to  the  Edda,  was  that  of  man.  Odin 
found  Ash  and  Elm  "  nearly  powerless,"  and  gave 
them  sense.  Tliis  was  the  first  man  and  woman.  Ac- 
cording to  the  Indians  of  Maine,  Glooskap  made  the 
first  men  from  the  a.s7i-tree.  They  lived  or  were  in 
it,  "  devoid  of  sense  "  till  he  gave  it  to  them.  It  is 
to  be  observed  that  primevally  among  the  Norse  the 
ash  alone  stood  for  man.  So  it  goes  on  through  the 
whole  Edda,  of  which  all  the  main  incidents  are  to  be 
found  among  the  sagas  of  the  Wabanaki.     The  most 


INTRODUCTION.  1 

striking  of  these  are  the  coincidences  between  Lox 
(lynx,  wolf,  wolverine,  badger,  or  raccoon,  and  some- 
times man)  and  Loki.  It  is  very  remarkable  indeed 
that  the  only  two  religions  in  the  world  which  possess 
a  devil  in  whom  mlachief  predominates  should  also 
give  to  each  the  same  adventures,  if  both  did  not 
come  from  the  same  source.  In  the  Ilymiskvida  of  the 
Edda,  two  giants  go  to  fish  for  whales,  and  then  have 
a  contest  which  is  actually  one  of  heat  against  cold. 
This  is  so  like  a  Micmac  legend  in  every  detail  that 
about  twenty  lines  are  word  for  woi'd  the  same  in  the 
Norse  and  Indian.  The  Micmac  giants  end  their 
whale  fishing  by  trying  to  freeze  one  another  to  death. 
It  is  to  the  Kev.  Silas  T.  Hand  that  the  credit  be- 
longs of  having  discovered  Glooskap,  and  of  having 
first  published  in  the  Dominion  Monthly  several  of 
these  Northern  legends.  After  I  had  collected  nearly 
a  hundred  among  the  Passamaquoddy  and  Penobscot 
Indians,  this  gentleman,  with  unexampled  kindness, 
lent  me  a  manuscript  of  eighty-four  Micmac  tales, 
making  in  all  nine  hundred  folio  pages.  Many  were 
similar  to  others  in  my  collection,  but  I  have  never  yet 
received  a  duplicate  which  did  not  contain  something 
essential  to  the  whole.  Though  the  old  Indians  all 
declare  that  most  of  their  lore  has  perished,  especially 
the  more  recondite  mythic  \y  oms,  I  am  confident  that 
much  more  remains  to  be  gathered  than  I  have  given 
in  this  work.  As  it  is,  I  have  omitted  many  tales 
simply  because  they  were  evidently  Canadian  French 
stories.     Yet  all  of  these,  without  exception,  are  half 


8  INTRODUCTION. 

Iiuli.in,  and  it  m:iy  be  old  Norse  modified ;  for  a 
Frem;li  story  is  sometiiiies  the  siiiue  with  one  in  the 
Eddas.  Again,  tor  want  of  room  1  have  not  given  any 
Indian  tales  or  chronicles  of  the  wais  with  the  Mo- 
hawks. Of  these  I  have  enongh  to  make  a  very  ciu'i- 
ous  volume. 

These  legends  belong  to  all  New  England.  Many 
of  them  exist  as  yet  among  the  scattered  fragments 
of  Indian  tribes  here  and  there.  The  Penobscots  of 
Oldtown,  Maine,  still  possess  many.  In  fact,  there  is 
not  an  old  Indian,  male  or  female,  in  New  England  or 
Canada  who  does  not  retain  stories  and  songs  of  the 
greatest  interest.  I  sincerely  trust  that  this  work  may 
have  the  effect  of  stimidating  collection.  Let  every 
reader  remember  that  everything  thus  taken  down, 
and  deposited  in  a  local  historical  society,  or  sent  to 
the  Ethnological  Bureau  at  Washington,  will  forever 
transmit  the  name  of  its  recorder  to  posterity.  Ar- 
chaeology is  as  yet  in  its  very  ])eginning ;  when  the 
Indians  shall  have  departed  it  will  grow  to  giant-like 
proportions,  and  every  scrap  of  information  relative 
to  them  will  be  eagerly  investigated.  And  the  man 
does  not  live  who  knows  what  may  be  made  of  it  all. 
I  need  not  say  that  I  should  be  grateful  for  such  In- 
dian lore  of  any  kind  whatever  which  may  be  trans- 
mitted to  me. 

It  may  very  naturally  be  asked  by  many  how  it 
came  to  pass  that  the  Indians  of  Maine  and  of  the 
farther  north  have  so  mncli  of  the  Edda  in  their  sa- 
gas ;  or,  if  it  was  derived  through  the  Eskimo  tribes, 


ixtroductwn:  9 

how  these  got  It  from  Xorsemen,  wlio  were  professedly 
Christians.  I  do  not  think  that  the  time  has  eome 
for  fully  answering  the  first  question.  There  is  some 
great  mystery  of  niytliology,  as  yet  unsolved,  regard- 
ing the  origin  of  the  Edda  and  its  relations  with  tlio 
faiths  and  folk-lore  of  the  older  Shamanie  beliefs,  such 
as  Lai)p,  Finn,  Samoyed,  Eskimo,  and  Tartar.  This 
was  the  world's  first  religion  ;  it  is  found  in  tlio 
so-called  Aecadian  Turanian  beginning  of  Babylon, 
whence  it  possibly  came  from  the  Wes;t.  l^tit  wliat 
we  have  here  to  consider  is  whether  the  Norsemen  did 
directly  influence  the  Eskimo  and  Indians.  Let  us 
first  consider  that  these  latter  were  passionately  fond 
of  stories,  and  that  they  had  aUained  to  a  very  high 
standard  of  culture  as  regards  both  appreciation  and 
invention.  They  were  as  fond  of  recitations  as  any 
white  man  is  of  reading.  Their  memories  were  in  tliis 
respect  very  remarkable  indeed.  They  have  taken 
into  their  repertory  during  the  past  two  hundred  years 
many  French  fairy  tales,  through  the  Canadians.  Is 
it  not  likely  that  they  listened  to  the  Northmen  ? 

It  is  not  generally  noted  among  our  learned  men 
how  lonff  the  Icelanders  remained  in  Greenland,  how 
many  stories  are  still  told  of  them  by  the  Eskimo,  or 
to  what  extent  the  Indians  continue  to  mingle  with  the 
latter.  During  the  eleventh,  twelfth,  and  thirteenth 
centuries,  says  the  Abl)e  jMorillot,  "there  were  in 
Greenland,  after  Archbishop  Adalbert,  more  than 
twenty  bishops,  and  in  the  colony  were  many  churches 
and  monasteries.     lu  the  Ocstrbugd,  one  of  the  two 


10  INTRODUCTION. 

inhabited  portions  of  the  vast  island,  were  one  hun- 
dred and  ninety  villages,  with  twelve  churches.  In 
Julianshaab,  one  may  to-day  see  the  ruins  of  eight 
churches  and  of  many  monasteries."  In  the  fifteenth 
century  all  these  buildings  were  in  ruins,  and  the  col- 
ony was  exterminated  by  the  pestilence  or  the  natives. 
But  among  the  latter  there  remained  many  traditions 
of  the  Scandinavians  associated  with  the  ruins.  Such 
is  the  story  of  Oren'gortok,  given  by  the  Abbe  Moril- 
lot,  and  several  are  to  be  found  in  Kink's  Legends. 
When  we  learn  that  the  Norsemen,  during  their  three 
centuries  of  occupation  of  Greenland,  brought  away 
many  of  the  marvelous  tales  of  the  Eskimo,  it  is  not 
credible  that  they  left  none  of  their  owti.  Thus  we 
arc  told  in  the  Floamanna  Saga  how  a  hero,  aban- 
doned on  the  icv  coast  of  Greenland,  met  with  two 
giant  witches  (Troldkoner),  and  cut  the  hand  from 
one  of  them.  An  old  Icelandic  work,  called  the  Ko- 
nungs  Skuggsjo  (Danish,  Kongespeilet),  has  much  to 
say  of  the  marvels  of  Greenland  and  its  monsters  of 
the  sea.  On  the  other  hand,  Morillot  declares  that 
the  belief  in  ghosts  was  brought  to  Greenland  by  the 
Icelanders  and  Scandinavians.  The  sagas  have  not 
been  as  yet  much  studied  with  a  view  to  establisliing 
how  much  social  intercourse  there  was  between  the  na- 
tives and  tlie  colonists,  but  common  experience  would 
teach  that  during  three  centuries  it  must  have  been 
sometliing. 

There  has  always  been  intercourse  between  Green- 
land and  Labrador,  and  in  this  latter  comitry  we  find 


INTRODUCTION.  11 

the  first  Algonquin  Indians.  Even  at  the  present  day 
there  are  men  among  the  iVIicmacs  and  Passama(i[uod- 
dies  who  have  gone  on  their  hunting  excursions  even 
to  the  Eskimo.  I  myself  know  one  of  the  latter  who 
has  done  so,  and  the  Rev.  S.  T.  Rand,  in  answer  to  a 
question  on  the  subject,  writes  to  me  as  follows  :  — 

"  Nancy  Jeddorc,  a  Micmac  woman,  assures  me  that 
her  father,  now  dead,  used  to  go  as  far  as  the  wild 
(heathen)  Eskimo,  and  remained  once  for  three  years 
among  the  more  civilized.  She  has  so  correctly  de- 
scribed their  habits  that  I  am  satisfied  that  her  state- 
ments are  correct."  ^ 

These  Eskimo  brought  from  tlie  Old  World  that 
primeval  gloomy  Shaman  religion,  or  sorcery,  such 
as  is  practiced  yet  by  Laplanders  and  Tartars,  such 
as  formed  the  basis  of  the  old  Accadian  Babylo- 
nian cultus,  and  such  as  is  now  in  vogue  among  all 
our  own  red  Indians.  I  believe  that  it  was  from  the 
Eskimo  that  this  American  Shamanism  all  came.  In 
Greenland  this  faith  assumed  its  strangest  form  ;  it 
made  for  itself  a  new  mythology.  The  Indians,  their 
neighbors,  borrowed  from  tliis,  but  also  added  new 
elements  of  an  only  semi- Arctic  character.  Tluis  there 
is  a  series  of  steps,  but  every  one  different,  from  the 

1  The  word  Eskimo  is  Algoiuiiiin,  moaning  to  eat  raw  fish, 
Eskumoga  m  Micmac,  and  people  who  cat  raw  flesh,  or  Es- 
kimooky  that  is,  eski,  raw,  and  moo-iik,  people.  Tliis  word  re- 
calls in-noo-ukf  people,  and  spirits,  ia  Eskimo,  Inniie,  which  has 
the  same  double  meaning.  This  was  all  suggested  to  me  by 
an  Indian. 


12  INTRODUCTION. 

Eskimo  to  tlic  Wabimaki,  of  Labrador,  New  Bruns- 
wick, and  Maine,  from  the  Wabanaki  to  tlie  Iroquois, 
and  from  the  Iroquois  to  the  more  western  Indians. 
And  while   tljey  all  have  incidents  in  connnon,  tlio 
character  of  each  is  radically  different. 

It  may  be  specially  noted  that  while  there  is  hardly 
an  important  i)oint  in  the  Edda  which  may  not  be 
found,  as  I  have  just  sh<jwn,  in  Wabanaki  legends, 
there  is  very  little  else  in  the  latter  which  is  in  com- 
mon with  such  Old  World  mythology  as  might  have 
come  to  the  Indians  since  the  discovery  ))y  Colinnbus. 
Excluding  French  Canadian  fairy  tales,  what  we  have 
left  is  chiefly  Eskimo  and  Eddaic,  and  the  proportion 
of  the  latter  is  simply  surprising.  There  are  ac- 
tually more  incidents  taken  from  the  Edda  than  there 
are  from  lower  sources.  I  can  only  account  for  this 
by  the  fact  that,  as  the  Indians  tell  mo,  all  these  tales 
were  once  />of'm,s',  handed  down  fi-oni  generation  to 
generation,  and  always  sung.  Once  they  were  re- 
ligious. Now  they  arc  in  a  condition  analogous  to 
that  of  the  German  lleldenbuch.  They  have  been 
cast  into  a  new  form,  Ijut  they  arc  not  as  yet  quite 
degraded  to  the  nursery  tale. 

It  may  be  objected  that  if  the  Norsemen  in  Green- 
land were  Christians  it  is  most  ludikely  that  they 
would  have  taught  the  h.^gends  of  the  Edda  to  the 
heathen  ;  to  which  I  reply  that  some  scholar  a  few 
centuries  hence  may  declare  it  was  a  most  improbable 
thing  that  Christian  Koman  Catholic  Indians  slioidd 
have  taught  me  the  tales  of  Glooskap  and  liox.     But 


INTRODUCTION.  13 

the  truth  Is,  wo  rejilly  know  very  little  as  to  how  soon 
wiinderiiig'  Vikings  went  to  America,  or  how  many 
were  here. 

I  would  say  in  conclusion  that,  while  these  legends 
of  the  Wabanaki  are  fragmentary  and  in('omi>lete, 
they  still  read  like  the  fragments  of  a  book  whoso 
subject  was  once  broadly  and  eolierently  treated  by  a 
man  of  genius.  They  are  handled  in  the  same  bold 
and  artistic  manner  as  the  Norse.  There  is  notliing 
like  them  in  any  other  North  American  Indian  rec- 
ords. They  arc,  cs})ecially  those  which  aie  from  the 
Passamac^uoddy  and  Penobscot,  inspired  with  a  gcniial 
cosmopolite  humor.  A\  hile  (ilooskap  is  always  a  gen- 
tleman, Lox  ranges  from  Punch  to  Satan,  ]>assing 
through  the  stages  of  an  Indian  ]Mephist()i)hcles  and 
the  Norse  Loki,  who  appears  to  have  been  his  true 
progenitor.  But  neither  is  quite  like  anything  to  bo 
found  among  really  savage  races.  AVhen  it  is  borne 
in  mind  that  the  most  ancient  and  mythic  (»f  these 
legends  have  been  taken  down  from  the  trend )ling 
memories  of  old  scpiaws  who  never  understood  their 
inner  meaning,  or  from  ordinary  sc'naj)!<  who  had  not 
thought  of  them  since  boyhood,  it  will  be  seen  tliat 
the  preservation  of  a  mass  of  prose  poems,  ecnial  in 
bulk  to  the  Kalevala  or  Ileldeubuch,  is  indeed  almost 
miraculous. 


THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS  OF  NEW 

ENGLAND. 


GLOOSKxVP  THE  DIVINITY. 

Of  Glooskaijs  Birth,   and  of  his  Brother  Mdlsum   the 

Wolf 

Now  the  great  lord  Glooskap,  who  was  worshiped 
in  after-days  by  all  the  Wabaiiaki,  or  children  of  light, 
was  a  twin  with  a  brother.  As  he  was  good,  this 
brother,  whose  name  was  Malsumsis,  or  Wolf  the 
younger,  was  bad.  Before  they  were  born,  the  babes 
consulted  to  consider  how  they  had  best  enter  the 
world.  And  Glooskap  said,  "  I  will  be  born  as  others 
are."  But  the  evil  Malsumsis  thought  himself  too 
great  to  be  brought  forth  in  such  a  manner,  and  de- 
clared that  he  would  burst  through  his  mother's  side.^ 
And  as  they  planned  it  so  it  came  to  pass.     Glooskap 

^  The  reader  of  Rabelais  cannot  fail  to  recall  here  the  remarks 
of  the  author  as  to  the  extraordinary  niannor  in  which  it  pleased 
the  giant  Gargantua  to  come  into  the  world.  The  Armenians 
believe  that  Christ  was  born  through  the  right  side  of  the  Virgin. 
The  Buddhists  say  the  same  of  Buddha's  birth.  (Ileth  and  Moab, 
London,  1883.)  Another  and  as  I  believe  the  correct  account  de- 
clares that  Malsum  the  Wolf  was  born  from  Ids  mother's  armpit. 


16       THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

as  first  came  quietly  to  liglit,  while  Mulsumsis  kept 
Lis  word,  killing  his  mother. 

The  two  gT(!W  lip  togetlier,  and  one  day  the  younger, 
who  knew  that  both  had  eharuied  lives,  asked  the 
elder  what  would  kill  liini,  (ilooskap.  Now  each  had 
his  own  seeret  as  to  this,  and  Glooskap,  remeni])ering 
how  wantonly  Malsumsis  had  slain  their  mother, 
thought  it  would  be  misplaced  confidence  to  trust  his 
life  to  one  so  fond  of  death,  while  it  miglit  prove 
to  be  well  to  know  the  bane  of  the  other.  So  they 
agreed  to  extihango  secrets,  and  (ilooskap,  to  test  his 
brother,  told  liini  tliat  the  only  way  in  which  lie  him- 
self couhl  be  slain  was  by  the  stroke  of  an  owl's 
feather,^  though  this  was  not  true.  And  Malsumsis 
said,  "I  can  only  die  by  a  blow  from  a  fern-root." 

It  came  to  ])ass  in  after-days  that  Kwah-beet-a-sis, 
the  son  of  the  Great  Beaver,  or,  as  others  say,  IVIiko 
the  S(piirrel,  or  else  tlic  evil  wliicli  was  in  himself, 
tempted  Midsumsis  to  kill  (ilooska}) ;  for  in  those  days 
all  men  were  wicked.  So  taking  his  bow  he  shot 
Ko  ko-khas  the  Owl,  and  with  one  of  his  feathers  ho 
struck  Glooskap  while  sleeping.  Then  he  awoke  in 
anger,  yet  craftily  said  tliat  it  was  not  by  an  owl's 
feather,  but  by  a  blow  from  a  pine-root,  that  his  life 
would  end. 

^  There  arc  different  readings  of  this  incident.  In  Mr.  Hand's 
manuscript  the  alleged  means  of  (Jlooskap's  death  is  descril)ed  as 
being  a  cat-tail  flag  (liaw-l:wee-usqu\  Passamaqnoddy),  wliilo  a 
handl'id  of  bird's  down  is  the  banc  of  !Malsuni  the  Wolf.  Tho 
teruiination  sis  is  a  diiuiuuti/e,  here  meaning  the  younger. 


GLOOSKAP    KILLING    HIS    BROTHER,  THE    WOLF. 


GLOOSKAP   THE  DIVINITY.  17 

Tlicn  tlio  false  man  ](mI  liis  Itrothcr  anotlKM*  day  far 
into  tlio  forust  to  hunt,  and,  wlillo  ho  a^a'ni  s!<'itt, 
smote  liim  on  tlie  hi-ad  with  a  i)ine-i'oot.  ihit  (iloos- 
kap  arose  unharmed,  drove  Malsumsis  away  into  the 
woods,  sat  down  by  the  brook-side,  and  tliinking  over 
all  that  iiad  hai>j)eued,  said,  *'  Notiiinj^-  but  a  flowering 
rush  can  kill  me."  But  tiie  Beavt-r,  who  was  hidden 
among  the  r(;eds,  heard  this,  and  hastening  to  Mal- 
sumsis  tohl  him  the  se(;ret  of  his  brother's  life.  For 
this  Malsumsis  promised  to  bestow  on  Beaver  wliat- 
cver  he  should  ask ;  but  when  the  latter  wished  for 
wings  like  a  i)lgeon,  the  warrior  laughed,  and  scorn- 
fully said,  "  Get  thee  hence; ;  thou  with  a  tail  like  a 
file,  what  need  hast  thou  of  wings  ?  " 

Then  the  Beaver  was  angry,  and  went  forth  to  the 
camp  of  Glooskap,  to  whom  he  told  what  he  had  done. 
Therefore  Glooskap  arose  m  sorrow  and  in  anger, 
took  a  fern-root,  sought  Malsumsis  in  tiie  deei),  dark 
forest,  and  smote  him  so  that  he  fell  down  dead.  And 
Glooskap  sang  a  song  over  him  and  lamented. 

The  Beaver  and  the  Owl  and  the.Sqnirrel,  for  what 
they  did  and  as  they  did  it,  all  come  again  into 
these  stories  ;  but  Malsumsis,  being  dead,  was  turned 
into  the  Shick-shoe  mountains  in  the  Gasp(3  pcninsiila. 

For  this  chai)tcr  and  parts  of  others  I  am  indebted 
to  the  narrative  of  a  Miemac  Indian,  taken  down  by 
Mr.  Edward  Jock  ;  also  to  another  version  in  the 
Rand  MS.  The  story  is,  in  the  main  jioints,  similar 
to   that   given  by  David  Cusick  in   his  History  of 


18       THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

the  Six  Nations,  of  Eiiigorio  the  Good  Mind,  and 
Enigonliahetgca,  Bad  Mind,  to  wliicli  I  shall  refer 
anon. 

It  is  very  evident  that  in  this  tradition  Glooskap 
represents  the  Good  principle,  and  Malsiinisis,  the  lit- 
tle wolf,  —  that  is  the  Wolf  who  is  the  Younger,  rather 
than  little  or  small,  —  the  Evil  one.  Malsum  typifies 
dcsti  notion  and  sin  in  several  of  these  tales.  lie  will 
arise  at  the  last  day,  when  Glooskap  is  to  do  battle 
with  all  the  giants  and  evil  beasts  of  olden  time,  and 
will  be  the  great  destroyer.  Malsum  is  the  Wolf 
Fenris  of  this  the  true  Indian  Edda. 

For  a  further  comment  on  this  birth  of  the  twins 
and  its  resemblance  to  a  passage  in  the  Edda,  the 
reader  is  referred  to  the  notes  on  the  next  chapter. 

How  Glooshap  made  the  Elves  and  Fairies^  and  then  Man 
of  an  Ash  Tree,  and  last  of  all,  Beasts,  and  of  his  Com- 
ing at  the  Last  Day. 

(Passamaquoddy.) 

Glooskap  came  first  of  all  into  this  country,  into 
Nova  Scotia,  Maine,  Canada,  into  the  land  of  the 
Wabanaki,  next  to  sunrise.  There  were  no  Indians 
here  then  (only  wild  Indians  very  far  to  the  west). 

First  born  wore  the  Mikumwess,  the  Oonabgemes- 
suk,  the  small  Elves,  little  men,  dwelL'rs  in  rocks. 

Antl  in  this  way  he  made  Man :  Ho  took  his  bow 
and  arrow^s  and  shot  at  trees,  the  basket-trees,  the 
Ash.     Then  Indians  came  out  of  the  bark  of  the  Ash- 


GLOOSKAP   THE  DIVINITY.  19 

trees.  And  then  the  IMlkumwees  said  .  .  .  called 
tree-man.^  .  .  . 

Glooskap  made  all  the  animals.  lie  made  tliem 
at  first  very  large.  Then  he  said  to  Moose,  the  great 
Moose  who  was  as  tall  as  Ketawkqu's,^  "  What  wonld 
you  do  should  you  sec  an  Indian  coming?"  Moose 
repliedj  "  I  would  tear  down  the  trees  on  liim."  Then 
Glooskap  saw  that  the  Moose  was  too  strong,  and 
made  him  smaller,  so  that  Indians  could  kill  liini. 

Then  he  said  to  the  Stpiirrel,  who  was  of  the  size 
of  a  Wolf,  "  What  would  you  do  if  you  should  meet 
an  Indian  ?  "  And  the  Scpiirrel  answered,  "  I  would 
scratch  down  trees  on  him."  Then  Glooskap  said, 
"  You  also  are  too  strong,"  and  he  made  him  little.^ 

Then  he  asked  tiie  great  A\  kite  Bear  what  he 
would  do  if  he  met  an  Indian ;  and  the  Bear  said, 
"  Eat  him."  And  the  Master  bade  him  go  and  live 
among  rocks  and  ice,  where  he  would  see  no  Indians. 

So  he  questioned  all  the  beasts,  changing  their  size 
or  allotting  their  lives  according  to  their  answers. 

He  took  the  Loon  for  his  dog  ;  but  the  Loon  ab- 
sented himself  so  much  that  he  cliose  for  this  service 
two  wolves,  —  one  black  and  one  white.^  But  the 
Loons  are  always  his  tale-bearers. 

1  The  rclater,  an  old  woman,  was  (iiiito  unintelligible  at  this 
point. 

'^  A  giant,  high  as  the  tallest  pines,  or  as  the  clouds. 

s  Another  account  states  that  Glooskap  took  the  8(piirrel  in 
his  hands  and  sinootlied  him  down. 

*  Dogs  are  used  for  beasts  of  burden,  to  draw  sledges,  in  tho 
North. 


20  THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS, 

Many  years  ago  a  man  very  far  to  the  North  wished 
to  cross  a  bay,  a  groat  distance,  from  one  })oint  to 
another.  As  he  was  stepping  into  his  canoe  he  saw 
a  man  with  two  dogs,  —  one  black  and  one  white,  — 
who  asked  to  bo  set  across.  The  Indian  said,  "  You 
may  go,  bnt  what  will  become  of  yonr  dogs  ?  "  Then 
the  stranger  replied,  "  Let  them  go  round  by  land." 
"  Nay,"  replied  the  Indian,  "  that  is  much  too  far." 
But  the  stranger  saying  nothing,  ho  put  him  across. 
And  as  they  reached  the  landing  place  there  stood 
the  dogs.  But  wdicn  he  turned  his  head  to  address 
the  man,  he  was  gone.  So  he  said  to  himself,  "  1  have 
seen  Glooskap." 

Yet  again,  — but  this  was  not  so  many  years  ago,  — 
far  in  the  North  there  were  at  a  certain  place  many 
Indians  assembled.  And  there  was  a  frightful  com- 
motion, caused  by  the  ground  heaving  and  rumbling ; 
the  rocks  shook  and  fell,  they  were  greatly  alarmed, 
and  lo  !  Glooskap  stood  before  them,  and  said,  "  I  go 
away  now,  but  I  shall  return  again ;  when  you  feel 
the  ground  tremble,  then  know  it  is  I."  So  they  wiU 
know  when  the  last  great  war  is  to  be,  for  then  Gloos- 
kap will  make  the  ground  shake  with  an  awful  noise. 

Glooskap  was  no  friend  of  the  Beavers ;  he  slew 
many  of  them.  Up  on  the  Tobaic  are  two  salt-water 
rocks  (that  is,  rocks  by  the  ocean-side,  near  a  fresh- 
water stream).  The  Great  Beaver,  standing  there 
one  day,  was  seen  by  Glooskap  miles  away,  who  had 
forbidden  him  that  place.  Then  ])icking  up  a  large 
rock  where  he  stood  by  the  shore,  he  threw  it  all  that 


GLOOSKAP   THE  DIVINITY.  21 

distance  at  the  Beavei",  wlio  indeed  dodged  it ;  bnt 
when  another  came,  the  beast  ran  into  a  mountain,  and 
has  never  come  forth  to  this  day.  lUit  the  rocks 
which  the  master  threw  are  yet  to  be  seen. 

This  very  interesting  tradition  was  taken  down  by 
Mrs.  W.  Walhiee  lirown  from  a  very  okl  Passama- 
quoddy  Indian  woman  named  ^lolly  Sepsis,  who  coukl 
not  speak  a  word  of  English,  with  the  aid  of  another 
younger  woman  named  Sarah. 

It  will  be  observed  that  it  is  said  in  the  beginning 
that  Glooskap  i)roduced  the  lirst  human  beings  from 
the  ash-tree.  Ash  and  Elm  in  the  Edda  were  the 
Adam  and  Eve  of  the  human  race.  There  were  no 
intelligent  men  on  earth  — 

"  Until  there  came  tlireo 
mighty  an<l  bencvDUuit 
Aesir  to  the  woild 
from  their  assembly 
nearly  powerless, 
Ash  and  Embla  (Ash  and  Elm), 
void  of  destiny. 

"  Spirit  they  possessed  not, 
sense  they  had  not, 
blood  nor  motive  powers, 
nor  goodly  color. 
Spirit  gave  Odin, 
sense  gave  IIoenir,« 
blood  gave  Lodur 
and  good  color."  * 

^  The   Edda   of  Sacmund,   translated   by    Ilenjamiu   Thorpe. 
Loudon  :  Triibner  &  Co.     18G0.     Voluspa,  v.  17,  18. 


22  THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

It  is  certain,  however,  tliat  the  ash  was  the  typic 
tree  of  all  life,  since  the  next  verse  of  the  Voluspa  is 
devoted  to  Yggdrasil,  the  tree  of  existence,  or  of  the 
world  itself.  It  may  be  observed  that  in  the  Finnish 
poem  of  Kalevala  it  is  by  the  destruction  of  the 
great  oak  that  Wiiiniimoien,  aided  by  the  hero  of  the 
sea,  causes  all  things  to  grow.  The  early  clearing 
away  of  trees,  as  a  first  step  towards  eidture,  may  be 
symbolized  in  the  shooting  of  arrows  at  the  ash. 

The  wolf,  as  a  beast  for  the  deity  to  ride,  is  strongly 
Eddaic. 

"  IMagic  songs  they  sung, 
rode  on  wolves, 
the  god  (Odin)  and  gods.^ 

We  have  here  within  a  few  lines,  accordingly,  the 
elm  as  the  parent  of  mankind,  and  wolves  as  the 
beasts  of  transjiort  for  the  supreme  deity,  both  in 
the  Indian  legend  and  in  the  Edda. 

As  Cilooskap  is  directly  declared  in  one  tradition  to 
keep  by  him  as  an  attendant  a  being  who  is  the  course 
of  the  sun  and  of  the  seasons,  it  may  be  assumed  that 
the  black  and  white  wolf  represent  day  and  night. 

Again,  great  stress  is  laid  in  the  Glooskap  legend 
upon  the  fact  that  the  last  great  day  of  battle  with 
IVIalsum  the  AVolf,  and  the  frost-giants,  stone-giants, 
and  otlier  powers  of  evil,  sliall  be  announced  by  an 
cartluiuake. 

^  Rof/iur  Of]  regin.  Odiu  and  the  Powers.  Note  by  B.  Thorpe 
to  the  Urafmujalar  Odhis,  iu  Edda,  p.  30. 


GLOOSKAP   THE  DIVINITY.  23 

"  Trembles  Yggdrasil's 
Ash  yet  standing, 
groans  that  aged  tieo  ... 
and  the  Wolf  inns  .  .  . 
The  monster's  kin  goes 
all  with  the  Wolf.  .  .  . 
The  stony  hills  are  dashed  together, 
The  giajitesses  totter. 
Then  arises  Illin's  second  grief 
When  Odin  goes 
with  the  wolf  to  fight." 

Word  for  word,  ash-tree,  giantesses,  the  supreme 
god  fighting  ^vith  a  wolf,  and  falling  hills,  are  given  in 
the  Indian  myth.  This  is  not  the  Christian  Day  of 
Judgment,  but  the  Norse. 

In  this  myth  Glooskap  has  two  wolves,  one  black 
and  the  other  white.  This  is  an  indication  of  day 
and  night,  since  he  is  distinctly  stated  to  have  as  an 
attendant  Kulpejotci,  who  typifies  the  course  of  the 
seasons.  In  the  Eddas  (Ragnarok)  we  are  told  that 
one  wolf  now  follows  the  sun,  another  the  moon ;  one 
Fenris,  the  other  Moongarm  :  — 

"  The  moon's  devonrer 
In  a  troll's  disguise." 

The  magic  arrows  of  Glooskap  are  of  course  world- 
wide, and  date  from  the  shafts  of  Abaris  and  those 
used  among  the  ancient  Jews  for  divination.  But  it 
may  be  observed  that  those  of  the  Indian  hero  are 
like  the  ^'  Guse   arrows,"    tlescribod    in    Oervarodd's 


24  THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

Saga,  wliich  always  hit  tlieh*  mark  and  return  to  the 
ono  who  shoots  tliem.^ 

It  is  important  here  to  conii)arc  this  old  Algonquin 
account  of  the  Creation  with  that  of  the  Iro(iuois,  or 
Six  Nations,  as  given  Ly  David  Cusick,  himself  an 
Indian  :  — 

"  There  was  a  woman  who  was  witli  cliild,  with 
twins.  She  descended  from  the  higher  world,  and 
was  received  ou  the  turtle.  While  she  was  in  the  dis- 
tress of  travail,  one  of  the  infants  in  her  womb  was 
moved  by  an  evil  desire,  and  determined  to  pass  out 
under  the  side  of  the  parent's  arm,  and  the  other  in- 
fant endeavored  in  vain  to  prevent  his  design.  They 
entered  the  dark  world  by  com[)ulsion,  and  their 
mother  expired  in  a  few  minutes.  One  of  them  pos- 
sessed a  gentle  disposition,  and  was  named  Enigorio, 
the  Good  Mind.  The  other  possessed  an  insolence  of 
character,  and  was  called  Enigonhalietgea ;  that  is, 
the  Bad  Mind.  The  Good  ISIind  was  not  content  to 
remain  in  a  dark  situation,  an<l  was  desirous  to  create 
a  "reat  liu'ht  in  the  dark  world  ;  but  the  Bad  Mind 
was  desirous  that  the  world  should  remain  in  its  orig- 
inal state.  The  Good  Mind,  determined  to  prosecute 
his  design,  began  the  work  of  creation.  Of  his  moth- 
er's head  he  made  the  sun,  of  her  body  the  moon. 
After  he  had  made  creeks  and  rivers,  animals  and 
fishes,  he  formed  two  images  of  the  dust  of  the  gi'ound 
in  his  own  likeness,  male    and   female,  and   by  his 

1  The  Primitive  Inhabitants  of  Scandinavia.     Hy  Svcn  Nilsson. 
Edited  by  Sir  John  Lubbock.     18G8. 


GLOOSKAP   THE  DIVINITY.  25 

breathing'  into  their  nostrils  lie  gave  thcni  living  sonls, 
and  named  them  ca  fjwc  Iiotce,  that  is  a  real  people  ; 
and  he  gave  the  Great  Island  all  the  animals  —  of 
game  for  the  inheritanc^e  of  the  i)eoi)le.  .  .  .  The  l>ad 
IVIind,  while  his  brother  was  making  the  nniverse, 
went  throngh  the  island,  and  made  numerous  high 
mountains  and  falls  of  water  and  great  steeps,  and 
also  created  reptiles  whi;h  would  be  injurious  to  man- 
kind ;  but  the  Good  Mind  restored  the  island  to  its 
former  condition.  The  Bad  Min«l  made  two  images 
of  clay  in  the  form  of  maidvind,  but  while  ho  was 
giving  them  existence  they  became  apes.  The  Good 
Mind  discovered  his  brother's  contrivances,  and  aided 
in  giving  them  livin<>"  souls. 

"  Finding  that  his  brother  continually  thwarted 
him,  the  Good  Mind  admonished  him  to  behave  bet- 
ter. The  Bad  Mind  then  offered  a  challenge  to  his 
l)rother,  on  condition  that  the  victor  should  rule  the 
universe.  The  Good  IMind  was  willing.  He  falsely 
mentioned  that  whipping  with  flags  [bulrushes]  would 
destroy  his  temporal  life,  and  earnestly  solicited  his 
brother  to  observe  the  instrument  of  death,  saying 
that  by  using  deer-horns  he  would  expire.  [This  is 
very  obscure  in  Cusick's  Indian-English.]  On  the 
day  appointed  the  battle  began ;  it  lasted  for  two  days ; 
they  tore  up  the  trees  and  mountains;  at  last  the  Good 
j\Iind  gained  the  victory  l)y  using  the  horns.  The  last 
words  uttered  by  the  Bad  Miud  were  that  he  would 
have  e(pial  ])ower  over  tlie  souls  of  maulcind  after 
their  death,  and  so  sank  down  to  eternal  doom  and 
became  the  Evil  Spirit." 


26  rilR  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

Contrasted  with  this  hardly  heathen  cosmoi:^ony, 
which  shows  recent  Bible  influence  throughout,  the 
Algonquin  narrative  reads  like  a  song  from  the  Edda. 
That  the  latter  is  the  original  and  tlie  older  there  can 
be  no  doubt.  Between  the  "  Good  Mind,"  making 
man  "  from  the  dust  of  tlie  earth,"  and  Glooskap, 
rousing  him  by  magic  arrows  from  the  ash-tree,  there 
is  a  great  difference.  It  may  be  observed  that  the 
fight  with  horns  is  explained  in  another  legend  in  this 
book,  called  the  Chenoo,  and  that  these  horns  are  the 
magic  horns  of  the  Chcpitch  calm,  or  Great  Serpent, 
who  is  somewhat  like  the  dragon. 

In  the  Algon(piin  story,  two  Loons  are  Glooskap's 
"  tale-bearers,"  which  occasion  him  great  anxiety  by 
their  prolonged  absences.  This  is  distinctly  stated  in 
the  Indian  legend,  as  it  is  of  Odin's  birds  in  the  Edda. 
Odin  has,  as  news-bringers,  two  ravens. 

*•  Hiigin  and  Miiiiin 
Fly  each  day 
over  the  spacious  earth. 
I  fear  for  Hiigin 
that  he  comes  not  back, 
yet  more  anxious  am  I 
for  ^lunin," 

The  Loons,  indeed,  occasioned  Glooskap  so  much 
trouble  by  absences  that  he  took  wolves  in  their  place. 
The  ravens  of  the  Edda  are  probably  of  biblical 
origin.  But  it  is  a  most  extraordinary  coincidence 
that  the  Indians  have  a  corresponding  perversion  of 
Scripture,  for  they  say  that  Glooskap,  when  he  was  in 


GLOOSKAP   THE  DIVINITY.  27 

tlift  ark,  that  is  as  Noah,  sent  out  a  white  dove,  which 
returned  to  him  colored  bhick,  and  became  a  raven. 
This  is  not,  however,  rehated  as  i)art  of  the  myth. 

The  Ancient  History  of  the  Six  Nations,  by  David 
Cusick,  gives  us  in  one  particuhir  a  strange  coinci- 
dence with  the  Edda.  It  tells,  us  that  the  Bad  jMind, 
the  principle  of  Evil,  forced  himself  out  into  life,  as 
Cusick  expresses  it  in  his  broken  Indian-English, 
"  under  the  side  of  the  parent's  arm  ; "  that  is,  through 
the  armi)it.  In  the  Edda  (Vafthrudnismal,  33)  wo 
are  told  of  the  first  beings  born  on  earth  that  they 
were  twins,  begotten  by  the  two  feet  of  a  giant,  and 
born  out  of  his  armpit. 

"  Under  tho  armpit  grow, 
'tis  said  of  tho  Ilriiutlmrs, 
a  girl  and  boy  together  ; 
foot  with  foot  begat, 
of  that  wise  Jcitun, 
a  six-headed  son." 

There  are  in  these  six  lines  six  coincidences  with 
red  Indian  mythology:  (1.)  The  Evil  princljde  as  a 
JiJtun's  first-born  in  the  one  and  the  Bad  ]\Iind  in  the 
other  are  born  of  the  mother's  arm])it.  (2.)  In  one  of 
the  tales  of  Lox,  the  Indian  devil,  also  a  giant,  we  are 
told  that  his  feet  are  male  and  female.  (3.)  In  both 
faiths  this  is  the  first  birth  on  earth.  (4.)  The  six- 
headed  demon  appears  in  a  IVIicmac  tale.  (5.)  Tiiore 
is  in  both  the  Eddaic  and  the  Wabanaki  account  a 
veiy  remarkable  coincidence  in  this :  that  there  is  a 
Titanic  or  giant  birth  of  twins  on  earth,  followed  by 


28  THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

the  creation  of  man  from  tlio  ash-trcc.  (G.)  Tlie  Evil 
principle,  wliether  it  be  the  Wolf-Lox  in  the  ^^'^{ll)a- 
naki  myths,  or  Loki  in  the  Norse,  often  tnrns  himself 
into  a  woman.  Tims  the  j.uale  and  female  sex  of  tho 
first-born  twins  is  identifietl. 

According  to  the  EdtUi,  the  order  of  births  on 
earth  was  as  follows  :  — 

First,  two  giants  were  born  from  the  mother's 
armpit. 

Secondly,  the  dwarfs  were  created. 

Thirdly,  man  was  made  from  the  ash-treo. 

According-  to  the  AVabanaki,  this  was  the  order  :  — 

First,  two  giants  were  born,  one  from  his  mother's 
armpit. 

Secondly,  the  dwarfs  (Milcnmwessuk)  were  created 
from  tho  bark  of  the  ash-tree. 

Thirdly,  man  was  made  from  the  trunk  of  the  ash. 

The  account  of  tlie  creation  of  the  dwarfs  is  want- 
ing in  the  present  manuscri})t. 

Of  the  Great  Deeds  which  Glooshap  did  for  Men  ;  how  he 

named  the  Animals,  and  tv/io  they  ivere  that  formed  his 

Family. 

(Passamaqnotldy.) 

Woodenit  atdh-hujen  Gloosckap  :  ^  this  is  a  story 

of  Glooskiip.     It  is  told  in  traditions  of  the  old  time 

that  Glooskap  was  l)orn  in  the  land  of  the  Wabanaki, 

which  is  nearest  to  the  sunrise  ;  bat  another  story  says 

that  he  came  over  the  sea  in  a  great  stone  cano(\  and 

that  this  canoe  was  an  Island  of  granite  covered  with 

1  Passaiuuquoddy. 


GLOOSKAP   THE  DIVINITY.  29 

trees.  AVlieii  tlic  great  man,  of  all  men  and  beasts 
chief  ruler,  had  come  down  from  this  ark,  he  went 
among  the  Wabanaki.^  And  calling  all  the  animals 
he  gave  them  each  a  name :  unto  the  J5car,  mooui ; 
and  asked  him  what  he  would  do  if  he  should  meet 
with  a  man.  The  Bear  said,  '•  1  fear  him,  and  1  should 
run."  Now  in  those  days  the  Sijuirrcl  {/ni-ko)  was 
greater  than  the  Bear.  Then  (jlooskai)  took  him  in 
his  hands,  and  smoothing  him  down  he  grew  smaller 
and  smaller,  till  he  became  as  we  see  him  now.  In 
after-days  the  Scjuirrel  was  Glooskap's  dog,  and  when 
he  so  willed,  grew  large  again  and  slew  his  enemies, 
however  fierce  they  might  be.  But  this  time,  when 
asked  what  he  would  do  should  he  meet  with  a  man, 
Mi-ko  rei)lied,  "  I  should  run  up  a  tree." 

Then  the  Moose,  being  questioned,  answered,  stand- 
ing still  and  looking  down,  "  I  should  run  through  the 
woods."  And  so  it  was  with  Kwah-bect  the  lieaver,^ 
and  Glooskap  saw  that  of  all  created  beings  the  first 
and  greatest  was  Man. 

Before  men  were  instructed  by  him,  they  lived  in 

^  This  part  of  the  legend  is  from  a  very  sin^'ilar  and  I  may 
add  almost  unintelligilile  manuscript,  Store;/  about  GInoscap,  writ- 
ten in  English  by  a  Passamaciuoddy  Indian.  The  word  ark 
which  occurs  in  it  reminds  me  that  the  Indian  from  whom  I  ol)- 
tained  it  once  asked  me  if  I  did  not  tliink  that  Glooskap  was  the 
same  as  Noah.  This  sentence  is  as  foHows  in  tht;  Indian-Eng- 
lish of  the  original  :  "  Gloosecap  hat  left  from  ark  come  crosse 
even  wiht  wabnocelel." 

^  This  is  very  obscure  in  the  original  manuscript.  It  reads 
"Herask  beaber  did  do  anything  just  look  behager." 


30       THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

darkness ;  it  was  so  dark  tliuL  they  could  not  oven  see 
to  slay  their  enemies.^  (ilooskap  taught  thoni  how  to 
hunt,  and  to  buikl  huts  and  canoes  and  weirs  for  fish. 
Before  he  came  they  knew  not  how  to  make  weapons 
or  nets,  lie  the  Great  blaster  showed  them  the  hid- 
den virtues  of  plants,  roots,  and  barks,  and  pointed  out 
to  them  such  vegetables  as  might  be  used  for  food,  as 
well  as  what  kinds  of  animals,  birds,  and  fish  were  to 
be  eaten.  And  when  this  was  done  he  taught  them 
the  names  of  all  the  stars,  lie  loved  mankind,  and 
wherever  he  might  be  in  the  wilderness  he  was  never 
very  far  from  any  of  the  Indians.  lie  dwelt  in  a 
lonely  land,  but  whenever  they  sought  him  they  found 
him.^  lie  traveled  far  and  wide :  thc;re  is  no  place  in 
all  the  land  of  the  Wabanaki  where  he  left  not  his 
name  ;  hills,  rocks  and  rivers,  lakes  and  islands,  bear 
witness  to  him. 

Glooskap  was  never  married,  yet  as  he  lived  like 
other  men  he  lived  not  alone.  There  dwelt  with  him 
an  old  woman,  who  kept  his  lodge ;  he  called  her 
Noogiimee,  "  my  grandmother."  (^licmac.)  With  her 
was  a  youth  named  Abistariaooch,  or  the  Martin.  (M.) 
And  Martin  coidd  change  himself  to  a  baby  or  a  lit- 

^  This  was  road  to  me  by  an  Indian  from  a  wampum  record, 
now  kept  at  Sebayk.  I  do  not  think  I  am  mistaken  in  the 
phrase.     It  probably  refers  to  iq^norance  of  warlike  weapons. 

-  This  is  from  the  Hand  mannscript.  The  writer  remarks 
that  these  expressions  were  the  very  words  of  a  Micmac  Indian 
named  Stephen  Flood,  "  who  had  no  idea  that  he  was  using  al- 
most the  identical  expressions  of  Holy  Writ  with  reference  to 
God." 


GLOOSKAP   Till':  DIVINITY.  81 

tie  boy,  a  youth  or  a  young  iiuin,  us  befitted  the  time 
in  whieli  he  was  to  act ;  for  all  tilings  about  (ilooskap 
were  very  wonderful.  This  Martin  ate  always  from 
a  small  birch -bark  dish,  called  tritch-kwcd-lakun- 
chccch  (M.),  and  when  he  left  this  anywhere  Gloos- 
kap  was  sure  to  find  it,  and  could  tell  from  its  ap- 
pearance all  that  had  befallen  his  family.  And 
Martin  was  called  by  Glooskap  Uch-keen  (M.)i  "i"y 
younger  brotlier."  The  Lord  of  men  and  Ijeasts  had 
a  belt  which  gave  him  magical  power  and  endless 
strength.  And  when  he  lent  this  to  Martin,  the 
younger  brother  could  also  do  great  deeds,  such  as 
were  oidy  done  in  old  times. 

Martin  lived  much  with  the  Mikumwess  or  Elves,  or 
Fairies,  and  is  said  to  have  been  one  of  them. 

IIoiv  JVln-jye  the  Sorcerer,  havlnfj  stolen  Glooskap's  Family^ 
was  by  him  pursued,  and  how  Glooskap  for  a  Mei'ry 
Jest  cheated  the  Whale.  Of  the  Sony  of  the  Clams,  and 
how  the  Whale  smoked  a  Pipe. 

(Micmac.) 

Nlmh-nc-oo.  In  old  times  (P.) 5  "i  tlie  beginning 
of  things,  men  were  as  animals  and  animals  as  men  ; 
how  this  was,  no  one  knows.  But  it  is  told  that  all 
were  at  first  men,  and  as  they  gave  themselves  up  to 
this  and  that  desire,  and  to  naught  else,  they  became 
beasts.  But  before  this  came  to  pass,  they  could 
change  to  one  or  the  other  form ;  yet  even  as  men 
there  was  always  something  which  showed  what  they 
were. 


32       THE   ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

Now  Glooskap  lived  on  an  island  named  Aja-lig- 
un-nieclik,  and  with  liiin  were  many  Indians  with  the 
names  and  natures  of  animals  and  birds. 

These  men,  but  most  of  all  Pulowech,  the  Partridge, 
having  acquired  i)ower  themselves,  became  jealous  of 
Glooskap,  and  made  up  their  minds  to  de})art  when 
he  was  away,  taking  with  them  Martin  and  the  grand- 
mother. For  they  had  great  hope  that  Glooskap, 
being  left  alone  on  the  island,  would  i)erish,  because 
they  knew  not  his  ])ower.  There  is  another  story 
which  says  that  he  was  living  at  the  mouth  of  the 
Oolostook,  at  a  i)lace  called  Menogwes  (St.  John, 
N.  B.),  and  went  away  into  the  forest  as  far  as  Gool- 
wahgik  (Juan),  and  had  been  gone  six  weeks,  when 
he  returned  homo  and  found  the  old  woman,  whose 
name  was  Mooinarkw,^  and  Martin  had  been  taken 
away.  Following  their  tracks  to  the  shore  he  saw 
one  of  his  greatest  enemies,  a  terrible  sorcerer  named 
Win-pe,  just  pushing  off  in  his  canoe.  And  with  him 
were  his  wife  and  child  and  Dame  Bear  and  Martin. 
They  were  still  within  call,  and  Glooskap  cried  from 
the  shore  to  the  grandmother  to  send  back  his  dogs, 
which  were  not  larger  than  mice,  and,  as  some  stories 
tell  us,  were  squirrels.  So  she  took  a  woltes-takun, 
which  is  a  small  wooden  platter,  and  on  such  Indian 
dice  are  tossed.  This  she  put  in  the  water,  and  placed 
the  dogs  on  it,  and  it  floated  to  the  shore,  and  Gloos- 
kap took  it  up.  AVin-pe  with  his  family  and  })risoner8 
pushed  on  to  Passamoogwaddy  (M.)i  ^^^^^  thence  to 

^  Mr.  ll;uid  translates  this  jNliciuac  word  as  Mrs.  Bear. 


GLOOSKAP    THE  DIVINITY.  33 

Grand  Mandn ;  and  after  remaining  there  a  while  lie 
crossed  over  to  Kes-poog-itk  (Yarmouth),  and  so  went 
slowly  along  the  southern  coast  througli  Oona-niahgik 
(Cajjc  Breton),  and  over  to  Uktidvkamkw  (New- 
foundland), where  he  was  slain. 

Now  whether  it  was  to  gain  magical  power,  or  to 
weaken  that  of  Win-pe,  or  to  chasten  the  others  by 
suffering,  who  knows  ?  But  (ilooskap  restetl  seven 
years  alone  before  he  pursued  the  enemy,  tliough 
some  say  it  was  seven  months.  And  when  the  time 
had  come,  he  took  his  dogs  and  went  to  the  shore,  and 
looked  far  out  to  sea  over  the  waves,  and  sang  the 
magic  song  which  the  whales  obey.^  Soon  there  rose 
in  the  distance  a  small  whale,  who  had  heard  the  call, 
and  came  to  Cilooskap  ;  but  he  was  then  very  great, 
and  he  put  one  foot  on  the  wliale  to  test  his  weight, 
and  the  fish  sank  und  .r  him.     So  he  sent  it  aw  ay. 

Then  the  lord  of  men  and  beasts  sanji'  the  sonc: 
again,  and  there  came  the  largest,  a  mighty  female, 
and  she  bore  him  well  and  easily  over  to  Kes-poog- 
itk.  But  she  was  greatly  afraid  of  getting  into  shoal 
water,  or  of  running  ashore,  and  this  was  what  Ciloos- 
kap wished  her  to  do  that  he  might  not  wet  his  feet. 
So  as  she  approached  she  asked  him  if  land  were  in 
sight.  But  he  lied,  and  said  "  No."  So  she  went  on 
rapidly. 

^  In   the  Tales  and  Traditions  nf  the  Eskimo,   by  Dr.    Ilonry 
Kink,  wc  are  told  in   the  story  t)f  Akigsiak  that  .ui   ohl  man 
taught  the  hero  a  magic  hiy  for  luring  .a  \vhak>   to  him.     In  an- 
other, Katcrsparsuk  sings  such  a  song  to  the  walrus. 
3 


34       THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

However,  she  saw  shells  below,  and  soon  the  water 
grew  so  shoal  that  she  said  in  fear,  "  3foon-aH-tahd- 
k((n-hiu-j^an-}iook  1  (M.)  Docs  not  the  land  show 
itself  like  a  bow-string-  ?  "  And  he  said,  "  We  are 
still  far  from  land." 

Tlien  the  water  grew  so  shoal  that  she  heard  tlie 
song"  of  the  Clams  as  they  lay  nnder  the  sand,  singing 
to  her  that  slie  should  throw  him  oft'  and  drown  him. 
For  these  Clams  were  his  deadly  enemies.  But  Bootup 
the  Whale  did  not  undei'stand  their  language,  so  she 
asked  her  rider  —  for  he  knew  Clam  —  what  they 
were  elianting  to  her.     And  he  replied  in  a  song:  — 

"  They  tell  you  to  luiriy  (cussul)  (^I.)> 
To  hurry,  to  huny  liiui  iiloug, 
Over  the  water, 
Away  as  fast  as  you  can  1 " 

Then  the  Whale  went  like  lightning,  and  suddenly 
found  herself  high  on  the  shore.  Then  she  lamented 
and  sang  :  — 

"  Alas,  my  granilchikl  (noojccch). 
All,  you  have  been  my  death; 
I  eau  never  leave  the  land, 
I  shall  swim  in  the  sea  uo  more." 

But  Glooskap  sang  :  — 

"Have  no  fear,  nnor/timce, 
You  shall  not  suffer, 
You  shall  swim  in  the  sea  once  more." 

Then  with  a  })ush  of  his  bow  against  her  head  he 
sent   her  olf  into  deep  water.     And  the  Whale  re- 


GLOOSKAP    LOOKING    AT   THE    WHALE    SMOKING    HIS    PIPE. 


GLOOSKAP   THE  DIVINITY.  35 

joiced  gi'oatly.  But  ere  she  went  she  said,  "  Oh,  my 
grandson,  "  KHeen  2>G^^<^i'^^^'"'>fi8S  n^aga  toinaw6  / " 
(P.).  llast  tliou  not  such  a  thing  as  an  okl  pipe  and 
some  tobacco?"     He  replied,  — 

"  Ah  yes. 
You  want  tobacco, 
I  behold  you." 

So  he  gave  her  a  short  pipe  and  some  tobacco,  and 
thereunto  a  light.  And  the  Whale,  being  of  good 
cheer,  sailed  away,  smoking  as  she  went,  while  Gloos- 
kap,  standing  silent  on  the  shore,  and  ever  leaning  on 
his  maple  bow,  beheld  the  long  low  cloud  which  fol- 
lowed her  until  she  vanished  in  the  far  away. 

In  a  Passamaquoddy  tale  of  Pook-jin-skwess  the 
Witch,  the  Clams  sing  a  song  deriding  the  hero.  The 
words  are  :  — 

•'  Mow  chow  nut-pess  sell 
Peri  marm-hole  wett." 

These  words  are  not  Indian,  but  they  are  said  to 
mean,  — 

You  look  very  funny  with  your  long  hair  streaming  in  the  wind, 
And  sailing  on  a  snail's  horn. 

The  large  Clams  sing  this  in  a  bass  voice,  the 
small  ones  in  falsetto.  The  gypsies  say  that  a  Snail, 
when  put  on  a  pie,  utters  four  cries,  or  squeaks  ;  lienco 
in  Germany  the  Komany  call  it  Stargoli :  that  is, 
shtoi'-godli,  four  cries. 


36  THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

Of  the  Dreadful  Deeds  of  the  Evil  Pitcher,  who  was  both 

Man  and  Woman,  and  how  she  fell  in  looe  with  Gloos- 

kap,  and,  being  scorned,  became   his  Enonij.     Of  the 

Toads  and   Furcujunes,  and  the  Awful  Buttle  of  the 

Giants. 

(rassiiniaquoddy.) 

When  Glooskap  came  into  the  world  it  abounded  in 
giants,  monsters,  sorcerers  and  witches,  fiends  and 
devils.  Amorig  the  witches  there  was  one  whom  the 
Passamaqnuddy  call  I'ook-jin-skwess,  or  the  Pitcher. 
And  they  have  a  legend  that  she  once  fell  in  love  with 
Glooskap  when  he  was  young  and  had  not  gained  the 
power  of  his  ript^r  age.  He  lied  before  her,  and  she 
pnrsued  him.  It  was  a  dreadful  flight,  since  to  make 
rapid  steps  both  took  the  form  of  giants  by  their  m^fJ- 
oulin  (P.),  or  magic  power.  It  was  like  an  awful 
storm  in  winter,  the  wind  chasing  the  cloud  ;  it  was 
like  a  frightful  tempest  in  sunnner,  the  lightning  chas- 
ing the  thunder.  As  the  snow  lay  deep,  both  had 
snow-shoes  on.  When  they  came  to  the  shore  Gloos- 
kap leaped  from  the  main-land  to  the  island  of  Grand 
Manan,^  and  so  escaped  her.  Now  the  snow-shoes  of 
Glooskap  were  sams'ooh  (P.),  or  round,  while  those 
of  Pook-jin-skwess  were  long  and  pointed,^  and  the 
marks  of  them  as  they  jumped  are  to  be  seen  deep  in 
the  rocks  to  this  day. 

^  It  is  not  impossible  that  this  well-known  Indian  witch  gave 
her  name  to  Moll  Pitcher,  the  famous  fortune-teller  of  Lynn. 
2  A  leap  of  about  nine  miles. 
^  The  Peuobscots  give  the  long  shoes  to  Glooskap. 


GLOOSKAP   THE  DIVINITY.  37 

When  Cilooska])  came  to  the  camp,  whicli  was  at 
Ognmkei;eak  (M.)i  now  called  Livcr})U(»l,  he  found  no 
one.  Jint  there  lay  the  witcJi-kicc.d-lakun-vJivvch  (M.), 
ol'  biieh-bark  dish  of  JVIartin,  and  fioin  it,  or,  as  an- 
other legend  states,  from  an  old  man  and  woman 
who  dwelt  hard  l)y,  he  learned  that  Win-pe  and  the 
families  had  been  gone  for  seven  years,  along  a  road 
guarded  by  wicked  and  horiiblc  beings,  placed  by 
Win-pe  to  prevent  the  Cireat  Master  from  finding  him. 
For  it  was  a  great  triumph  for  him  to  keep  (jh)oska2)'s 
friends  as  slaves,  and  all  the  land  spoke  thereof. 

And  these  monsters  were  Pook-jin-skwess,  or  the 
Evil  Pitcher  herself,  in  many  forms  ;  for  she  could  be 
man  or  woman, ^  or  many  of  them,  and  also  several 
girls,  when  she  willed  it.  Now  it  is  a  great  i)art  of 
Indian  iiiteoiilhi  (P.)  to  know  what  one's  enemies 
are  planning  and  i)k)tting,  and  all  their  tricks  and 
darkened  i)aths  :  and  in  this  (jlooskap  went  beyond 
them  all,  for  ])efore  his  time  every  one  went  his  own 
way,  even  in  wickedness.  Put  Glooskap  first  of  all 
threw  out  his  soul  unto  others. 

And  when  he  came  to  Ogundccok  he  found  a  hut, 

^  In  the  Tales  and  Traditions  of  the  Eskimo,  we  are  tcilcl  that 
a  woman  named  Arnakuak,  heinjj;  apparently  j^ifteil  l»y  ma<fic 
with  the  ability  to  ehanjjfe  hor  sex,  had  her  danyliter-in-law, 
Uknamak,  for  a  wife,  and,  having  eloped  with  her,  was  followed 
and  killed  by  her  own  son.  As  this  is  almost  immediately 
followed  by  a  story  of  a  man  who  gave  birth  to  a  child,  it  would 
appear  that  the  idea  was  eomm<ni  to  both  ICskimo  and  Indians. 
Only  the  wicked  magicians  iii  Indian  tales  change  their  sex, 
like  Loki  in  the  Edda. 


38  THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

and  in  it,  seated  over  a  fire,  the  ugliest  old  hag  he  had 
ever  seen,  trembling  in  every  limb,  as  if  near  death, 
dirty,  ragged,  and  loathsome  in  all  ways.  Loolcing 
up  at  him  with  bleared  eyes,  she  begged  him  to 
gather  her  a  little  firewood,  which  he  did.  And  then 
she  prayed  him  to  free  her  from  the  tcah  (jooh  (M.),  or 
vermin,  with  which  she  was  covered,  and  which  were 
maddening  her  with  their  bites.  These  were  all 
devils  in  disguise,  the  spirits  of  foul  pcdson,  such  as 
she  deemetl  nuist  kill  even  the  Master.  Now  Gloos- 
kap,  foreseeing  all  this,  had  taken  with  him,  as  he 
came,  from  a  bog  many  cranberries.  And  bidding 
Pook-jin-skwess  bend  over,  he  began  to  take  from  her 
hair  the  hideous  vermin,  and  each,  as  he  took  it,  be- 
came a  horrid  porcupine  or  toad.^  Then  the  hag 
asked,  "Have  you  found  one?"  "I  have,"  replied 
the  Master.  "  Bdsp  !  "  (M.)  "  Crush  it !  "  was  her 
answer,  and  Glooskap  crushed  a  cranberry  ;  and  she, 
hearing  the  noise,  thought  that  he  had  done  as  she  bid, 
and  that  tlie  poison  on  his  fingers  would  penetrate  to 
his  life.     But  he  put  the  imps,  one  by  one,  under  the 

^  III  the  Eskimo  mythology,  Arnarkuagxak,  tlic  old  woman  of 
the  sea,  is  tormented  by  vermin  abont  her  head.  These  are 
really  the  souls  of  still-born  or  murdered  infants,  who  have  be- 
come imps.  The  first  thing  which  the  ain/akbk  or  sorcerer,  who 
visits  her  must  do  is  to  free  her  from  these  pests.  The  de- 
scent of  the  sorcerer  to  this  mother  of  all  the  monsters  of  the 
sea,  who  are  at  the  same  time  giants,  when  they  choose  to  assume 
the  human  form,  recalls  that  of  Odin  to  Hela.  Both  make  this 
journey  to  hell,  not  for  themselves,  but  in  the  interests  of  man- 
kind. 


GLOOSKAP   THE  DIVINITY.  39 

woollen  platter,  wliicli  lay  before  liiiu.  As  this  went 
on  lie  put  the  witch  to  sleej).  When  she  awoke  he 
was  g  )ne.  The  foul  porcupines  and  toads  were  swarm- 
ing all  over  the  ground,  having  upset  their  hive.  And 
fdled  with  fury  at  being  made  a  jest  of,  since  it  was  a 
great  despite  that  he  had  not  even  found  it  worth 
while  to  kill  her  when  asleep,  she  burst  out  into  her 
own  form,  which  was  beautiful  as  sin,  wild  as  the 
devil,  and  gathering  up  all  her  imps,  and  making  her- 
self far  more  magical  by  fiercer  will,  went  onward  to 
encounter  him  again. 

Then  Glooskap  came  to  a  narrow  pass  in  the  hills. 
Here  were  two  terrible  beasts,  as  one  story  has  it,  or 
two  monstrous  dogs,^  as  it  is  told  in  another.  And 
they  attacked  him ;  but  he  set  his  own  at  them,  and 
they,  growing  to  tremendous  size,  killed  the  others. 
His  doffs  were  so  trained  that  when  called  to  come 
off  they  went  on,  and  the  more  they  were  bid  to  be 
quiet  the  more  they  bit. 

Soon  he  came  to  the  top  of  a  high  liill,  and  look- 
ing thence  over  all  the  land  saw  afar  off  a  large  wig- 
wam, and  knew  in  his  heart  that  an  enemy  dwelt 
therein.  And  coming  to  it  he  found  an  old  man  and 
his  two  daughters.^     Now  the  girls  came  out  greeting 

^  The  liuliiins  liiid  dogs  before  the  coining  of  the  whites. 
They  were  wolf-like. 

2  In  another  account,  an  okl  sorceress  and  her  daughters  ; 
also  an  old  man  and  his  wife  and  daughters.  According  to  two 
versions,  these  are  all  separate  wizards,  hut  tlie  whole  spirit  of 
the  Passamaquoddy  legends  make  them  Pook-jin-skwess  alone. 


40  THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

liiin  with  very  pleasant  j^lanccs,  wooing  softly  and 
sweetly ;  they  offered  liim  a  string  of  sausages,  such 
as  the  Indians  make  from  the  entrails  of  the  bear 
by  only  turning  them  inside  out.  For  the  fat,  whieli 
(jlings  to  the  outside,  fills  the  skin.  A\'hen  these  are 
washed  and  dried  and  smoked,  many  deem  them  de- 
licious. But  these  which  the  girls  offered,  as  girls 
do,  to  show  their  love,  by  easting  tiie  string  round  tlie 
neck  of  the  favored  youth,  were  enchanted,  and  had 
they  (mee  put  the  necklace  upon  him  he  would  have 
been  ovcrpowereiL  However,  they  knew  not  of  tliis 
new  magic  which  the  Master  had  brouglit  into  tlie 
laud,  by  which  one  can  read  the  heart ;  so,  as  they 
sidled  up  unto  him  with  smiles  and  blandishments, 
waving  in  the  wind  as  they  danced  tluur  garlands  of 
enchanted  sausages,  he  looked  as  if  he  wanted  to  be 
won.  And  when  his  dogs  growled  at  them  he  cried, 
"  Cu»s  !  "  (^1.),  whicli  means  Stop  !  but  which  the 
dogs  only  knew  as  "  Hie,  at  them  !  "  So  they  flew  at 
the  witches,  and  these  flashed  up  like  Are  into  their 
own  dreadful  forms  of  female  fiends.  Then  there 
was  a  terrible  tunudt,  for  never  before  in  the  land  of 
the  Wabanaki  had  there  been  such  a  battle.  All  the 
earth  and  rocks  around  were  torn  up.  All  the  while 
the  Master   cried   to   the   dogs,    "  Stop !     These   are 

In  the  story  of  the  Rabbit  and  Lnsifco  the  sorcerer  singly  twice 
assumes  tlie  form  of  an  old  man  and  liis  two  daughters.  There  is 
yet  another  story,  in  which  a  magician  thus  triples  himself  with 
two  daughters.  It  is,  I  believe,  Eskimo,  but  I  cannot  distinctly 
remember  as  to  this. 


GLOOSKAP    SETTING    HIS    DOGS    ON    THE   WITCHES. 


GLOOSKAP   THE  DIVINITY.  41 

my  sisters.  Come  off,  ye  evil  l»oast,s!  Jjot  them 
alonu  I  Cease,  oh  cease!"  Yet  the  m(»i'('  ho  ex- 
hoitcd  tliom  to  ])ea('e  the  more  thoy  iiu'lincd  to  war, 
and  the  more  fiercely  they  fought,  until  the  witches 
fled. 

Then  he  entered  the  wif^wam  where  the  old  sor- 
cerer sat,  waiting  for  him  as  food.  And  the  Master 
said,  "  Are  you  hungry  V  Or  do  you  love  sausages? 
Here  they  are  !  "  Instantly  casting  the  links  around 
Ills  neck,  he  was  taken,  and  Glooskap  slew  him  with 
one  Idow. 

Then,  going  on,  he  reached  the  Strait  of  Cam- 
soke  '  (M. ),  or  Canso,  and  to  (U'oss  over  again  sang 
tlie  song  which  wins  the  whales,  and  one  of  tliese  ris- 
ing, carried  him  to  tlie  opposite  sliore.  Thence  he 
made  the  circle  of  Oona-mah-gik,  keeping  round  by 
the  southern  coast,  and  coming  to  the  old  camps 
where  his  enemy  had  been.  From  the  vy'itch-hved- 
hd-un-cheech,  or  birch-bark  dish,  left  by  Martin,  he 
learned  how  long  tliey  had  been  gone.^  ^Mien  he 
came  to  Uk-tu-tun  (M.,  Cai)e  North)  he  found  they 
had  rowed  to  Uk-tuk-amqw  (M.,  Newfoundland),  and 
had  left  three  days  before. 

1  Ciuns(jkc  moans,  "  There  is  a  high  bhiff  on  the  opposite  sifle 
of  the  river.  "  —  S.T.  lliiucl. 

-  As  the  gypsy  leaves  his  patteran,  oi  sign,  so  the  Iiulian 
makes  marks  which  set  forth  eleai-ly  euoiigli  liow  h)iig  he  lias 
eamped  at  any  place,  and  how  many  were  in  the  party,  etc.  It 
may  be  supposed  that  Martin,  not  daring  to  attract  "\Vin-pe's  at- 
tention, effected  this  by  a  few  secret  scratches.  Thus  three  lines 
and  a  crescent  or  moon  would  mean  tkree  nights. 


42       THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

Then  again  lie  sang,  and  once  more  a  whale  carried 
him  over.  And  now  he  knew  that  he  was  indeed 
coming  to  what  he  songht,  for  in  the  deserted  camp 
he  found  the  embers  of  a  lire,  still  smoking.  Ad- 
vancing rajndly,  he  saw  near  the  next  camp  Martin, 
seeking  wood  to  burn.  The  youth  and  the  old  Dame 
Boar  had  been  most  cruelly  treated  by  AVin-pe,  and 
they  were  nearly  starved,  but  Martin's  clothes  were 
good.^  And  Martin  was  so  sunk  in  sorrow  that  ho 
did  not  hear  Glooskap  call  him,  and  not  till  the  Mas- 
ter threw  a  small  stick  at  him  did  he  look  up,  and 
even  then  he  thought  it  had  fallen  from  a  tree.  Then, 
seeing  him,  he  cried  out  with  joy  ;  but  Glooskap,  who 
was  hiding  in  the  woods,  bade  him  be  silent.  "  Wait 
till  it  is  dark,"  he  said,  "  and  I  will  go  to  youi-  wig- 
wam. Now  you  may  go  home  and  tell  your  grand- 
mother." 

In  the  other  story  (M.)  it  is  narrated  that  as  Mar- 
tin with  the  grandmother  were  on  the  road,  and  Dame 
Bear  bore  him  as  almost  a  babe  on  her  back,  he 
turned  his  head  and  saw  Glooslcap  following  them, 
and  ci'ied  out,  — 

"  Whore,  oh  where, 
Where  is  my  brotlier  ? 
He  who  fed  luc  often 
Oil  the  marrow  of  the  moose  !  " 

1  There  is  a  reason  for  tliis  singular  detail.  Nancy  Jeddore,  the 
Indian  from  whom  Mr.  Rand  learned  one  version  of  this  legend, 
informed  him  that  the  Martin,  thin  at  all  times,  always  has  a  fine 
fnr,  however  stai'ved  ho  may  be.  Dying  with  hunger,  he  is  al- 
ways well  dressed. 


GLOOSKAP   THE  DIVINITY.  43 

And  she  replied,  — 

"  Alas  for  thee,  boy  ! 
lie  is  far,  far  away  ; 
You  will  sec  hill)  no  more." 

But  the  little  fellow,  seeing  hiin  again,  sang  as  before, 
and  Dame  Bear,  turning  her  head  and  beholding  her 
Master,  was  so  moved  that  she  fainted  and  fell  to  the 
ground.  Then  Glooskap  raised  her  in  his  arms,  and 
wlien  she  had  recovered  she  related  how  cruelly  they 
had  been  treated  by  Win-pe.  And  Glooskap  said, 
"  I5ear  with  him  yet  a  little  while,  for  I  will  soon  pay 
him  in  full  for  what  he  has  done." 

Then  the  Master  bade  the  old  woman  go  back  to 
the  camp  with  Martin,  and  say  notliing.  It  was  the 
youth's  duty  to  go  for  water  and  tend  the  baby  in  its 
swinging  cot.  And  Glooskap  told  liira  all  that  he 
should  do.  When  he  should  biing  water  he  must 
mix  with  it  the  worst  filth,  and  so  offer  it  to  ^^'^in-pe, 
the  sorcerer. 

And  even  as  he  ordered  it  was  done,  and  Martin 
meekly  offered  the  foul  drink  to  the  evil  man,  who  at 
the  smell  of  it  cried  ah)ud,  "  Uk  say  I "  (]\[.,  Oh,  hor- 
ror !)  and  bade  him  bring  a  cleaner  cu]).  But  Martin, 
bearing  the  babe,  threw  it  into  the  fire,  and,  running 
to  the  spot  where  Glooskap  hid,  cried  out,  '•'•  JVse-sakof 
nse-sal-o  !  "  (M.,  My  brother  I  my  brother  0  Win-pe, 
l)ursuing  him,  said,  "  Cry  out  to  him ;  your  brother 
cannot  help  you  now.  He  is  far  av/ay  from  here,  on 
the  island  where  I  left  him.  Cry  out  well,  for  now 
you  nuist  die  !  "    All  this  had  been  done  that  Win-po's 


44  THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

power  miglit  be  put  to  sloop  by  anger,  and  his  mind 
drawn  to  other  thiniis.  And  the  Master  rose  before 
him  in  all  his  might,  and  stei)ped  forward,  wliile 
Win-i)e  drew  backward  a  pace  to  recover  his  strength. 
And  with  great  will  tlie  ^Master  roused  all  the  magic 
within  him,  and,  as  it  came,  he  rose  till  his  head  was 
above  the  tallest  pine ;  and  truly  in  those  days  trees 
were  giants  beyond  those  of  this  time.  But  the  lord 
of  men  and  beasts  laughed  as  he  grew  till  his  head 
was  far  above  the  clouds  and  reached  the  stars,  and 
ever  higher,  till  AVin-pe  was  as  a  child  at  his  feet. 
And  holding  the  man  in  scorn,  and  disdaining  to  use 
a  nobler  weapon,  he  tapped  the  sorcerer  lightly  with 
the  end  of  his  bow,  like  a  small  dog,  and  he  fell 
dead. 

Hoio  the  Story  of  Glooship  and  Pool--jin-sJcircss,  the  Evil 
Fitcher,  is  told  hi/  the  I'assamafjuoddi/  Indians.^ 

(Passamaquoddy.) 

There  was  a  village  of  Indians  who  were  all  Black 
Cats,  or  Po'gum'k.  One  of  them,  the  cleverest  and 
bravest,  went  forth  every  day  with  bow  and  arrow,  tom- 

^  In  this  story  Glooskap  is  called  Poo-mnk,  the  Black  Cat  or 
Fisher,  that  is,  a  species  of  wild  cat,  while  IVIartin  is  a  N'moek- 
swcss,  sable.  There  seems  to  be  no  settled  idea  as  to  what  was 
the  tutem  or  innate  animal  nature  of  the  lord  of  men  and  Ijeasts. 
1  have  .1  series  of  pictures  scraped  on  birch-bark  illustrating 
these  myths,  executed  by  a  PassanKupioddy,  in  which  (Jlooskap 
and  the  adopted  grandmother  in  the  stone  canoe  are  represented 
as  wood-chucks,  or  ground-hogs.     (Mon-in-kwess,  P.) 


GLOOSKAP   THE  DIVINITY.  45 

ahiuvk  and  kiiifo,  and  killed  moose  and  beau,  and  sent 
meat  to  the  })oor,  and  so  he  fed  them  all.  When  he 
returned  they  came  to  him  to  know  where  his  game 
lay,  and  when  he  had  told  them  they  went  forth  with 
toboggins  ^  and  returned  with  them  loaded  witli  meat. 
And  the  chief  of  the  Black  Cats  was  by  his  mother 
the  son  of  a  bear.'*^ 

Pook-jin-skwess,  the  Witch,  was  a  Black  Cat.  She 
was  a  woman  or  a  man  as  she  willed  to  be  ;  but  in 
these  days  she  was  a  man.  And  she,  being  evil,  hated 
the  chief,  and  thought  long  how  she  could  kill  or  re- 
move him,  and  take  his  place.  Now,  one  day  when 
all  the  cjunp  had  packed  what  they  had,  being  about 
to  travel.  Pitcher  asked  the  chief  to  go  with  him,  or 
with  her,  as  you  may  will,  down  to  the  water-side  to 
gather  gulls'  eggs.  And  then  they  went  far  out  in  a 
canoe,  and  very  far,  and  still  farther,  till  they  came  to 
an  island,  and  there  they  landed,  and  while  Pogiunk 
(wlio  was  Glooskap)  souglit  for  eggs,  the  false-hearted 
Pitcher  stole  away  in  the  (fkiredcn  (P.,  canoe),  and  as 
she  paddled  she  sang  a  song  — 

"  Nikliod-hii  Pogumk  niin  iiekuk, 
Netswil  sagiinuiwin  !"     (!'.) 

"  I  havp  loft  the  Black  Cat  on  an  island, 
I  shall  be  the  chief  of  the  Fishers  now  !  " 

^  Toboggin,  a  sled  made  very  simply  hy  turning  iip  the  ends 
of  one  or  more  pieces  of  wood  to  prevent  them  fn)m  catching  in 
the  snow. 

^  A  confused  but  important  point  in  all  these  myths. 


46       THE  ALGONQUTN  LEGENDS. 

So  slic  c.'une  to  the  village,  and  the  next  clay  they 
all  (loparteil  through  the  woods  ;  there  was  not  one  o£ 
them  left  save  the  one  who  was  worth  them  idl.  And 
at  night  they  camped,  expecting  every  day  that  the 
chief  would  come  to  them,  and  till  then  Pitcher  was 
in  his  place. 

Now  on  the  thirtieth  day  the  chief  remembered  his 
friend  the  Fox,  who  had  vit^oid'm  (1*.),  or  magic 
power.  And  he  sang  a  song,  and  the  Fox  heard  it, 
although  he  was  miles  away,  beyond  forests  and  moun- 
tains. And  thus  knowing  all,  he  went  to  the  shore 
and  swam  to  the  island,  where  he  found  the  chief.  At 
this  time  the  Black  Cat  could  not  swim  such  a  dis- 
tance,^ but  the  Fox  offered  to  take  him  to  the  main- 
land. Then  they  waded  into  the  water,  and  the  Fox 
said,  "  Close  thine  eyes  and  hold  fast  to  my  tail  as 
tightly  as  thou  canst,  and  be  of  good  faith,  oh,  my 
elder  brother,  and  we  shall  soon  gain  the  shore." 
Saying  this,  he  swam  away  and  his  friend  followed. 
And  it  went  well  with  them,  but  the  chief  grew  weary, 
and  he  opened  one  eye  a  little,  and  saw  that  they  were 
not  ten  feet  from  the  shore.  And  being  of  little  faith 
he  thought,  for  he  spoke  not  aloud,  "  We  shall  never 
get  to  land."  But  the  Fox  replied,  "  Do  not  believe 
it."  But  the  journey  lasted  long,  for  what  seemed  to 
Pogumk  to  be  ten  feet  was  ten  miles,  and  the  wind 

^  Tho  most  powerful  manilous,  or  mapcians,  in  the  Chippcway 
tales,  as  well  jis  in  all  others  of  the  Indians,  may  exhaust  their 
power  and  be  forced  to  depend  on  that  of  inferiors  in  the  great 
art.     In  this  tale  Glooskap  is  decidedly  under  a  cloud. 


GLOOSKAP    THE   DIVINITY.  47 

was  lil2:h  and  the  waters  wore  wild,  for  Pitoher  had 
called  forth  a  storm.  So  they  swam  all  day  and  all 
the  evening  before  tliey  landed.  "  And  n(nv,  my  elder 
brother,"  said  the  Fox,  ''  you  may  go  your  way."  And 
he  went  to  the  camp  of  the  Black  Cats. 

When  he  came  to  the  camp  it  was  cold,  and  there 
were  only  ashes,  for  the  people  had  gone  on.  So  ho 
followed  them,  and  in  one  day  came  near  them.  And 
the  fust  whom  he  overtook  was  his  mother,  bearing 
his  younger  brother  Sable  ('Xnunok  -  swess.  P.)  on 
her  back,  so  that  while  she  looked  forward  he  looked 
behind.  And  as  Pogumk  peeped  out  from  among 
the  leaves.  Sable  saw  him,  and  said,  "Here  comes  my 
brother  I  "  And  slie  turned,  but  saw  nothing,  for  the 
chief  suddenly  hid  himself  behind  a  tree.  Then  they 
went  on,  and  Sable  cried  again,  "  Indeed,  mother,  I 
behold  my  elder  brother!"  And  this  time  the  mother, 
glancing  quickly,  caught  him,  and  they  all  laughed 
for  joy,  and  she  threw  Sable  down  in  the  leaves,  like 
a  stick.  Then  the  chief  bade  Sable  run  to  the  camp. 
"xVnd  when  you  are  there,"  he  said,  "build  up  a  great 
fire  of  hemlock  bark,  and  take  Pitcher's  babe,  even  the 
babe  which  she  loves,  and  which  you  tend,  and  throw 
it  into  the  fire,  and  run  to  me  as  fast  as  you  can,  for 
verily  thou  wilt  be  in  dire  need  to  do  so." 

And  as  he  commanded  it  was  done  ;  and  when  tlie 
fire  was  hot.  Sable  threw  the  babe  into  it,  and  it  was 
burned  to  death.  And  Pitcher,  being,  as  one  may 
well  believe,  maddened  at  such  a  sight,  pursued  him 
as  a  starving  wolf  pursues  a  rabbit.     Then  Sable,  in 


48  THE   AiaONQlJIN  LEGENDS. 

groat  fear,  cried  aloud,  "Oh,  my  older  brother,  my 
brother!"  And  Pitehor  .sevc'amed,  "Call  aloud  to 
hiiu,  for  you  nuist  run  as  far  as  tli '  island  where  Po- 
gundc  is,  to  save  youiself  I  "  And  at  that  word  Po- 
giunk  ste[)pod  forward  and  confronted  her,  and  said, 
"  Truly,  she  need  not  run  so  far." 

And  seeing  him  and  hearing  this,  fear  came  n])on 
her ;  but  she  laughed  aloud  to  hide  it,  and  said,  "  1 
did  but  chase  him  in  si)()rt,  for  I  love  Sable."  J>ut 
Pogunik  replied  grindy,  '•  1  know  tiiee  and  thy  tricks, 
thou  the  evil  one."  Then,  as  his  magic  had  come 
to  him,  he  used  his  power,  and  jnit  Pitcher  with,  her 
back  against  a  tree ;  and  there  she  stayed,  stuck  to 
it,  unable  to  get  away,  l^ut  the  chief  and  Sable 
went  to  the  camp.  Now  Pitcher  had  a  hatchet  and 
wedge,  and  with  nuich  ado  she  cut  herself  away,  and 
the  Pdack  Cats  hoard  her  jiounding  and  chop])ing  all 
niii'ht  long.  And  in  the  niornin!>'  she  came  to  them, 
and  there  was  a  groat  pie(^e  of  wood  sticking  to  her 
back,  and  they  laughed  her  to  scorn,  and  sang  at 
her,  — 

"lie  who  inado  the  cliiof 

Stiiy  on  a  distant  island, 

He  is  stui'k  by  the  chief 

Fast  with  his  back  to  a  tree." 

Now  Pitcher  the  Witch,  being  mad  with  shame  and 
spite.  Hod  from  tlio  face  of  man,  and  ran  through  the 
woods  like  a  wild  wolf.  And  so  she  came  to  r)ar 
Harbor  (Pcs"s(mk(pi\  P.),  and  sat  down  on  a  log, 
and  said,  with  her  heart  full  of  bitterness  and  malice. 


GLOOSKAP   THE    DIVINITY.  49 

"I  would  that  I  could  bocouio  somotliiuji- which  should 
tortncut  all  iiu'u."  Aud  as  siie  said  this  slio  iK'caino 
a  nios([ulto  (T'sis-o,  I*.),  aud  so  it  cauie  to  j)ass  that 
nios(|uitocs  were  uiado.  Aud  to  this  day  uicu  sec  that 
wherever  the  lUack  Cat  is,  there  too  is  the  Sublc  not 
far  away.^ 

Of  this  Pooh-jiu-skwoss  it  was  said  that  she  had 
chihlren  of  her  own,  begotten  by  sorcerers  and  giants 
and  monsters ;  but  as  they  were  all  ugly  she  stole 
froui  the  Indian  women  their  faii'cst  babes,  and 
brought  theui  u])  as  if  they  were  her  owu,  that  sho 
might  not  be  entirely  put  to  shame  because  of  her 
children.  And  once  she  had  thus  stolen  a  boy,  and 
when  he  grew  up  some  one  said  to  him  that  he  should 
not.  believe  that  she  was  hih)  motlior,  but  should  (pies- 
tion  her  as  to  it.  Now  the  youth,  reflecting  on  this, 
observed  that  his  brothers  and  sisters  were  all  as  ugly 
as  evil  beasts  and  no  better  behaved,  while  he  hiuiself 
was  comely  and  good.     Then  he  asked  her  what  this 

^  The  Passaniaquofldy  version  relates  that  Pitcher  in  her 
ilij^ht  pursued  a  moose  to  l>ar  Harbor,  where,  having  kiUed 
him  and  drawn  out  the  entrails,  she  petrified  him.  A  Penobscot 
woman  told  me  she  had  often  seen  the  moose  rock  there,  and  the 
"  inments."  But  she  attnl)uted  the  deed  to  Glooskap,  to  wliom 
it  properly  heloni^s,  his  petrifh-d  moose  and  dog's  and  the  print  of 
his  ])ow,  etc.,  being  still  sliown  in  Xova  Scotia;  and  it  is  also  said 
that  it  was  at  Freshwater,  after  returning  from  Bar  Harbor 
(Maine),  that  Pitcher  was  changed  into  a  mos(piito. 

Another   story  states   that    Pook-jin-skwess,    having   pursued 
young  men  all  her  life,  changed  into  a  moscpiito  that  she  might 
continue  to  prey  on  them. 
4 


60  THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

might  mean.  And  she  replied,  laughing,  "  Because 
they  were  all  begotten  (or  born)  in  the  night-time, 
but  you  are  a  child  of  the  day  and  of  light."  ^ 

How  Glooskap  became  friendlij  to  the  Loons,  and  made 
them  his  Messengers. 

(Micniac.) 

When  Glooskap  was  pursuing  A\'in-pe,  ho  one  day 
on  Uktukandiw  saw  from  afar  ilying  over  water  the 
Kwe-moo  (M.),  or  Loons.  And  thrice  did  their  chief 
make  the  circle  of  tlie  lake,  coming  near  to  the  land 
of  men  and  beasts  every  time,  as  if  ho  woidd  fain 
seek  somewhat.  Then  Glooskap  asking  him  what  he 
wanted,  Kwe-moo  rei)lied  that  he  would  be  his  ser- 
vant and  friend.  So  Glooskap  tauglit  him  a  strange 
long  cry  like  the  howl  of  a  dog,  and  when  the  loons 
were  in  need  of  him  or  would  pray  to  him  they  were 
to  utter  this  cry. 

And  it  came  to  pass  that  when  he  was  in  New- 
foundland he  came  to  an  Indian  town,  and  they  who 
dwelt  therein  were  all  Kwee-moo-uk,  or  Loons.  And 
they,  as  men,  were  exceeding  glad  to  see  their  lord, 
wdio  had  blessed  them  as  birds,  and  did  their  best  to 

1  There  is  probably  an  allusion  in  this  to  the  Wabauaki,  or 
Chilcbon  of  Light  ;  that  is,  the  Algonquin.  This  story  was  told 
nie  by  Noel  Josephs,  a  Passamaquoddy. 

I  have  been  told  by  an  old  Passamaquoddy  woman  that  the 
descendants  of  Pook-jin-skwcss  were  the  'Xmmok-skwess.  This 
stealing  the  white  boy  is  related  in  another  tale  more  fully.  It 
may  refer  to  the  early  dark  JCskinio. 


G  LOO  SKA  P   THE  DIVINITY.  61 

please  him.  So  lie  made  tliom  his  Imntsmen  and  mes- 
sengers, and  in  all  the  talcs  of  Glooskap  the  Kwee- 
moo  ever  appears  as  faithful  to  him.  AVJience  to  this 
day,  when  the  Indians  hear  the  cry  of  the  Loon,  they 
say,  ^^  Kwcmoo  cl-komik-too-ajid  GloocapaV  (lie 
is  calling  upon  Glooskap). 

How  Glooskap  made  his  Uncle  Mike  hick  the  Turtle  into 
a  Great  Man,  and  got  Mm  a  Wife}  Of  I'lO'tles'  E'jtjs, 
and  how  Glooskap  vantjulshcd  a  Sorcerer  hij  smoking 
Tobacco. 

(Mieinac  aiul  Passamaquodily.) 

Now  when  Glooskap  left  Uktukanikw,  or  New- 
foundland, it  was  in  a  canoe,  and  he  came  to  Piktook 
(M.  for  Pictou),  which  means  the  bubbling  up  of  air, 
because  there  is  much  bubblinq;  in  the  water  near  that 
l)lace.  And  here  there  was  an  Indian  village,  and  in 
that  place  the  Master  met  with  a  man  whom  he  L)ved 
all  his  life. 

^  This  logend  of  the  tortoise  is  carefully  compiled  from  six 
dillereut  versions  :  the  narration  of  Toniah  fJosephs,  a  Passania- 
(jiioddy  ;  the  Anglo-Indian  manuscript,  already  cited  ;  two  ac- 
counts in  the  Rand  manuscript  ;  the  author  (pioted  without  credit 
in  The  l^Iaritime  Provlnccii  ;  and  one  by  Mrs.  W.  Wallace  Brown. 
As  the  totem  of  the  Tortoise  was  of  the  highest  rank  among  the 
Algonquins,  this  account  of  its  origin  is  of  correspoudijig  interest. 
llavinjT  employed  an  old  Indian  to  carve  the  handle  of  a  war 
or  scalping  knife  for  me,  such  as  was  used  by  his  PassanuKpioddy 
ancestors,  he  carved  on  it  a  tortoise.  It  was  especially  the  totem 
of  the  Lcnni-Lenape,  called  by  the  I'assamatpioddies  Lel-le-mabc, 
"  the  people." 


52  THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

And  this  was  not  because  this  man,  whose  name  in 
Miemac  is  Mikehit'h  and  in  Tassaniaciuoddy  Chick- 
we-notehk,  meaning  tlic  Turtle,  was  great,  or  well 
favored,  or  rieli.  For  truly  he  was  none  of  these, 
being  very  poor  and  lazy,  no  h)nger  young,  and  not 
very  clever  or  wise  in  any  way.  It  is  said  that  ho 
was  indeed  (Tlooskap's  uncle,  but  others  think  that 
this  was  by  adoption.  However,  this  old  fellow  bore 
all  his  wants  with  such  good  nature  that  the  Master, 
taking  him  in  great  affection,  resolved  to  make  of  him 
a  mighty  man.  Which  came  to  pass,  and  that  in  a 
strange  manner,  as  we  shall  see. 

For  coming  to  Piktook,  where  tliere  were  above  a 
hundred  wigwams,  Glooska}),  being  a  very  handsome, 
stately  man,  with  the  manner  of  a  great  chief,  was 
much  admired,  and  that  not  a  little  by  all  the  women, 
so  that  every  one  wished  to  have  him  in  the  house. 
Yet  he  gave  tliem  all  the  go-by,  and  dwelt  with  his 
old  uncle,  in  whoso  quaint  ways  and  old-time  stories 
he  took  great  delight.  And  there  was  to  be  a  great 
feast  with  games,  but  Glooskap  did  not  care  to  go, 
either  as  a  guest  or  a  performer  in  the  play. 

Still  he  inquired  of  IMikchich  if  he  would  not  take 
part  in  it,  telling  him  tliat  all  the  maidens  would  bo 
there,  and  asking  him  why  he  had  never  married,  and 
saying  that  he  should  not  live  alone.  Then  the  uncle 
said,  "  Poor  and  old  and  i)lain  am  I ;  I  have  not  even 
garments  fit  for  a  feast ;  better  were  it  for  me  to  smoke 
my  })i})e  at  home."  "  Truly,  if  that  be  all,  uncle,"  re- 
plied Glooskap,  "  1  trow  I  can  turn  tailor  and  lit  you 


GLOOSKAP   THE  DIVINITY.  53 

to  a  turn  ;  jiiid  have  no  care  as*  to  your  outside  or 
your  face,  for  to  him  who  knows  how,  't  is  as  easy  to 
make  a  man  over  as  a  suit  of  clothes."  *'  Yes  ;  but, 
nephew,"  said  Mikchich,  "  how  say  you  as  to  making 
over  the  inside  of  a  mortal?  "  "  By  the  great  Heaver  I  " 
answered  the  Master,  "  that  is  something  harder  to 
do,  else  I  were  not  so  long  at  work  in  this  world.  But 
before  I  leave  this  town  1  sh:dl  do  that  also  for  you  ; 
and  as  for  this  present  sport,  do  but  put  on  my  belt." 
And  when  he  had  done  that,  Mikchich  became  so 
young  and  handsome  that  no  man  or  woman  ev«!r  saw 
the  like.  And  then  (ilooskap  dressed  him  in  his  own 
best  clothes,  and  promised  him  tluit  to  the  end  of  his 
days,  whenever  he  should  be  a  man,  he  would  be  the 
comeliest  of  men  ;  and  because  he  was  patient  and 
tough,  he  should,  as  an  animal,  become  the  hardest  to 
kill  of  all  creatures  on  the  face  of  the  earth,  as  it  came 
to  pass. 

So  Mikchich  went  to  the  feast.  Now  the  chief  of 
Piktook  had  three  beautiful  daughters,  and  the  young- 
est was  the  loveliest  in  the  land.  And  on  her  he  cast 
his  eyes,  and  returning  said,  "  I  have  seen  one  whom 
I  want."  Now  all  the  young  men  in  Piktook  desired 
this  girl,  and  would  kill  any  one  who  would  win  her. 

So  the  next  day  Glooskap,  taking  a  bunch  of  v<aw- 
hap  (P.,  wampum),  went  to  the  chief  and  pro])osed  for 
Mikchich,!  and  the  mother  at  once  said  ''  Yes."     So 

^  All  invitations  to  festivals,  or  formal  coronionios,  proposals 
of  marriage,  etc.,  were  preceded  among  these  tribes  by  a  gift  of 
wampum. 


64  THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

the  j^Irl  niiulo  up  a  bod  of  fresh  twi<;s  and  covered  it 
witli  a  great  white  bear-skin,  and  went  to  Mikehieh, 
and  tliey  returned  and  liad  dried  meat  for  supper.  So 
they  were  married. 

Now  Turtle  seemed  to  be  very  lazy,  and  when 
others  hunted  he  lounged  at  home.  One  day  his 
young-  wife  said  to  him  that  if  this  went  on  thus  they 
nuist  soon  starve.  So  he  put  on  his  snow-shoes  and 
went  forth,  and  she  followed  him  to  see  what  he 
woidd  do.  And  ho  had  not  gone  far  ore  he  trip})ed 
and  fell  down,  and  the  girl,  returning,  told  her  mother 
that  ho  was  worthless,  lint  the  mother  said,  "  lie  will 
do  something  yet.      I>(!  patient." 

One  day  it  eame  to  pass  that  (ilooskap  said  to  IVIik- 
chieh,  "  To-morrow  there  will  be  a  great  game  at  ball, 
and  you  nuist  i)lay.  But  because  you  have  made  your- 
self enemies  of  all  the  young  men  hero,  they  will  seek 
to  slay  you,  by  crowding  all  together  and  trampling 
upon  you.  And  when  they  do  this  it  will  be  by  your 
father-in-law's  lodge,  and  to  escape  them  I  give  you 
the  power  to  jump  high  over  it.  This  you  may  do 
twice,  but  the  third  time  will  bo  terrible  for  you,  and 
yet  it  nuist  be." 

All  this  happened  as  he  foretold  ;  for  the  young  men 
indeed  tried  to  take  his  life,  and  to  escape  them  jVIik- 
chich  jumped  over  the  lodge,  so  that  he  seemed  like 
a  bird  flying.  But  the  third  time  he  did  this  he  was 
caught  on  the  top  of  the  tent-poles,  and  hung  there 
danu'linii'  in  the  smoke  which  rose  from  below. 

Then  Glooskap,  who  was  seated  in  the  tent,  said. 


a. 

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GLOOSKAP   THE   DIVINITY.  55 

"  L  nclc,  I  will  now  make  you  i\\v,  sof/)no,  or  great 
chief  of  the  Tortcnses,  and  you  tsluill  bear  up  a  great 
nation."  Then  he  smoked  Mlkelilch '  .so  long  that  his 
skin  became  a  hard  shell,  and  the  marks  of  the  smoko 
may  be  seen  thereon  to  this  day.  And  removing  his 
entrails  he  destroyed  them,  so  that  but  one  short  one 
was  left.  And  he  cried  aloud,  "  J///ooAs  .' (M. )  My 
no})hew,  you  will  kill  me  I  "  But  the  nephew  replitnl, 
"  Not  so.  I  am  giving  you  great  life.  From  this 
time  you  may  roll  through  a  llame  and  never  feel  it, 
and  live  on  land  or  in  tlie  water.  And  though  your 
head  be  cut  off,  it  will  live  for  nine  days,  and  your 
heart,  even,  shall  beat  as  long  when  taken  from  your 
body."     So  Mikeliich  rejoiced  greatly. 

And  this  came  betimes,  for  he  soon  had  need  of  it 
all.  For  the  next  day  all  the  men  went  on  a  hunt, 
and  the  Master  warned  him  that  they  would  seek  to 
slay  him.  Novv  the  young  men  went  on  before,  and 
Turtle  lingered  behind ;  but  all  at  once  he  made  a 
magic  flight  far  over  their  heads,  unseen,  and  deep 
in  the  forest  he  slew  a  moose.  Then  he  drew  this  to 
the  snow-shoe  track  or  road,  and  when  his  foes  came 
up  there  he  sat  upon  the  moose,  smoking,  and  wait- 
ing for  them.  Now  Glooskap  had  t<ild  them  that 
they  would   see   some  one    come  out  ahead  of   them 

1  In  a  verbal  Passamaqiiodcly  narrative  (John  Gabriel),  and 
in  one  given  iu  llie  Marifi/m;  Prarhiccsi,  this  was  eiVeeted  by 
Glooskap  with  tobaoco-snioko  from  liis  pipe.  In  Mr.  Rand's 
mannseript  it  is  the  smoke  of  the  tent-fire.  The  T'assaniacnioddy 
narrations  are  invariably  more  .spirited  and  humorous  thau  tho 
Micmac. 


56  THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

all  that  day,  aud  wliou  this  came  to  pass  they  were 
more  angered  iu  their  hearts  than  ever. 

So  they  plotted  to  kill  Turtle,  and  his  nephew,  who 
was  about  to  leave,  told  hhn  how  it  would  be.  "  First 
of  all,  they  will  build  a  mighty  lire  and  throw  you 
in  it.  But  do  thou,  O  uncle,  go  cheerfully,  for  by 
my  power  thou  wilt  in  nowise  suffer.  Then  they  will 
speak  of  drowning,  but  thou  must  beg  and  pray  that 
this  may  not  be ;  and  then  they  will  the  more  seek  to 
do  so,  and  thou  shalt  fight  them  to  the  bitter  end,  and 
yet  it  shall  be." 

And  as  he  said,  so  it  came  to  pass ;  and  Mikchich, 
being  of  good  cheer,  bade  farewell  to  his  nephew.^ 
And  they  seized  him  and  threw  him  into  a  great  fire, 
but  he  turned  over  and  w^nt  to  sleep  in  it,  bciing  very 
lazy  ;  and  when  tlie  fire  had  burnt  out  he  awoke,  and 
called  for  more  wood,  because  it  was  a  cold  night. 

Then  they  seized  him  yet  again,  and  spoke  of 
drowning.  But,  hearing  this,  he,  as  if  he  were  in 
mortal  dread,  begged  them  not  to  do  this  thing.  And 
he  said  they  might  cut  him  to  pieces,  or  burn  him,  as 
they  would,  but   not  to    throw  him   into   the  water.^ 

^  Tliis  is  amusingly,  though  not  very  clearly,  set  forth  in  the 
Indian  manuscript  as  follows  :  "  Make  believe  but  you  dond  want 
be  trown.  So  he  shaken  hands  witt  is  nuncel  kiek  liororch  good 
by  do  him.  Tell  is  uncle  you  —  I  shall  not  be  Icill  and  I  am  going 
Lever  (to  live)  —  we  may  meet  again." 

^  This  in  the  original  is  extremely  like  Brer  R.abbit's  prnyer 
not  to  be  thrown  into  the  briei'-bush.  As  this  legend  is  one  of 
the  oldest  of  the  Algouiiuin,  and  certainly  antedating  the  com- 
ing of  the  whites,  I  give  it  the  priority  over  the  negro. 


GLOOSKAP   THE  DIVINITY.  57 

Therefore  they  resolved  to  do  so,  and  dragged  hiin 
on.  Then  he.  sereanied  horribly  and  fought  lustily, 
and  tore  up  trees  and  roots  and  rocks  like  a  nuuliuan ; 
but  they  took  him  into  a  canoe  and  paddled  out  into 
the  middle  of  the  lake  (or  to  the  sea),  and,  throw- 
ing him  in,  \vatch(;d  him  sink  as  he  vanished  far  down 
below.  So  they  thought  him  dead,  and  returned  re- 
joicing. 

Now  the  next  day  at  noon  tliere  was  a  hot  sun- 
shine, and  sometliing  was  seen  basking  on  a  great 
rock,  about  a  mile  out  in  the  lake.  So  two  young 
men  took  a  canoe  and  went  forth  to  see  what  this 
might  be.  And  when  they  came  to  the  edge  of  the 
rock,  which  was  about  a  foot  high,  there  lay  ]\lik- 
chich  sunning  himself  ;  but  seeing  them  coming  to 
take  him,  lie  only  said,  "  Good-hy,''  and  rolletl  over 
plump  into  the  water,,  where  ho  is  living  to  this  day. 
In  memory  whereof  all  turtles,  when  they  see  any 
one  coming,  tip-tilt  themselves  over  into  the  water  at 
once. 

And  Turtle  lived  hai)pily  with  his  wife,  and  she 
had  a  babe.  Now  it  happened  in  after-days  that 
(ilooskap  came  to  see  his  uncle,  and  the  chihl  cried. 
"  Dost  thou  know  what  he  says  ?  "  exclaimed  the  Mas- 
tor.  "  Truly,  not  I,"  answered  Mikchich,  "  unless  it 
be  the  language  of  the  Mu-se-gisk  (P.,  Spirits  of  the 
Air),  which  no  man  knoweth."  "  Well,"  replied 
(Ilooskap,  "he  is  talking  of  eggs,  for  he  says  '■  Hoo- 
v:ah  !  hoo-wah ! '  which  methinks  is  nuicli  the  same 
as   '  Waw-wun,   ivaw-wun.''      iVnd   this    in   Passama- 


68       THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

quoddy  iiu'juis  cy^-.  "•  I>ut  wiicro  aro  tlicro  any?" 
asked  iMiki'liicli.  Tlieii  (il<>()ska[)  bado  him  seek  in 
the  sand,  and  he  iound  many,  and  achnired  and  niar- 
veh'd  over  them  greatly  ;  and  in  memory  of  this,  and 
to  glorify  this  jest  of  Clhjoskap,  the  Tnrtlo  hiyeth  eggs 
even  to  this  day. 


Tlio  great  Gh)oska])  was  a  right  valiant  smoker;  in 
all  the  world  was  no  man  who  loved  a  pipe  of  good 
tobaeco  so  nuich  as  lie.  In  those  days  the  snmmers 
were  h)nger  in  tiie  land  of  the  Wabanaki,  the  snn 
was  warmer,  anil  the  Indians  raised  toniaicc  (tobaeeo, 
P. ),  and  solaeed  themselves  mightily  therewith.^  And 
there  eame  to  (ilooska])  a  certain  evil-minded  magi- 
cian, who  songht  to  take  his  life,  as  the  jMaster  very 
well  knew,  for  he  read  the  hearts  of  men  as  if  tliey 
had  been  strings  of  wampnm.  And  this  nileoullii 
(P.,  magieian),  believing  himself  to  be  greatest  in  all 
things,  thonght  to  appall  Gh^oskap  by  outdoing  him 
at  first  in  something  at  which  he  excelled ;  for  a  lish 
is  fi'ightened  when  another  swims  faster,  but  not  till 
then. 

And  the  man  sat  down  to  smoke  with  an  exceeding 
long  pij)e  with  a  great  bowl,  but  that  of  (Uooskap 
grew  to  be  nnieli  greater.  Then,  having  filled  his 
pipe,  the  sorcerer  exhausted  and  burnt  it  out  at  one 

^  I  have  mot  with  :iu  old  Iiuliiin  woman  in  Now  linmswick 
who  told  me  that  her  graiulmother  remembered  to  have  seen  to- 
bacco raised  there  by  the  Passamaquoddy. 


CLOOSKAP    THE   DIVINITY.  69 

pull,  and  thou  blow  all  the  smoke  out  of  his  noso  at  oiio 
j)ull'.  So  ho  sat  and  Icjcjkod  at  tho  Mastor.  J>ut  (jIoos- 
ka^),  whoso  l)i['o  held  tea  tinujs  as  much  tobacco,  did 
tho  same,  aud  bhnvin^'  it  out  s})lit  tho  rocky  {^vouud, 
so  that  a  L'Toat  chasm  opened  bidoro  them.  Them  they 
wore  silent  awhile,  till  the  Mastei'  said,  "  If  you  can 
do  that  you  may  hill  me/'  Hut  he  could  not,  and  so 
wont  back  with  shame  to  those  who  had  sent  him.' 

How  Gloos/citp  sailed  throii[/h  the  <jixat   ('accrii  of  Darlcr 

ncss. 
(Micniiic.) 

Now  it  is  told  in  another  tradition  —  and  men  tell 
oven  this  dirt'erontly  —  that  jiltchc,  in  those  old  times 
(1\)  Gk)oskap's  seven  neighbors,  who  wore  all  so  many 
dif'l'eront  animals,  took  away  his  family,  and  that  ho 
followed  them,  oven  as  it  has  been  written,  unto  New- 
foundland. And  when  ho  came  there  it  was  night, 
aud,  lindiiig  Marten  ah)ne,  he  took  him  forth  into  the 
forest  to  seek  food,  putting  his  belt  on  tlui  boy,  whioh 
gave  him  such  power  that  he  hunted  well  and  got 
nmoli  meat. 

So  it  came  to  pass  that  tho  nc?ct  morning  Dame 
Kah-kah-gooeli,  tho  Crow%-  observed  that  ]\Iarten  was 

1  In  this  "  Uilo  of  tobacco,"  told  nic  l)y  .loliii  (iiibriel,  the 
cvil-iniiulLid  niagiciiui  is  doserihod  ;is  ;i  Hluck  Cut.  Tiiis  is  ju'ol)- 
ably  ail  error,  as  Ghmskap  himsuii'  apin-ars  as  chief  of  the  lUack 
Cats  in  another  tale.  It  may  be,  liowever,  that  this  was  Pook- 
jin-skwess  in  disj^nise. 

■•^  Kah-lith-gooch,  IVIicniac,  Kah-lah-gon^,  rassania<ino(hly.  The 
Crow  is  represented  in  several  stories  as  always  peeping,  spy- 


60  THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

drying  moat  on  his  wigwam.  And  this  slic  spread 
abroad.  JUit  when  the  people  learned  that  the  ehild 
had  tlone  this,  a  great  fear  eanie  upon  them  all,  and 
they  sat  every  man  in  his  lodge  and  awaited  death, 
for  they  knew  that  the  Master  had  eome. 

And  he  indeed  eame  ;  but  when  he  saw  them  all  as 
frightened  as  rabbits  before  the  wild-eat,  he  laughed 
aloud  and  forgave  them,  for  lie  was  nol)le  and  gen- 
erous. And  as  they  were  hungry  —  for  he  had  eome 
in  hard  times  —  he  gave  them  much  venison,  and  sor- 
row departed  from  their  wigwams.  But  as  they  had 
left  him  of  old,  he  now  left  them.  AVhen  they  knew 
him  not  they  left  him  to  die  ;  now  that  they  knew  him 
they  feared  lest  they  should  i)erish  without  him.  But 
he  turned  his  steps  towards  other  paths. 

Now  having  made  a  canoe,  the  Master,  with  Marten 
and  Dame  Bear,  went  upon  a  mighty  river.  As  the 
story  says,  it  was  Ijroad  and  beautiful  at  first,  and  so 
they  sailed  away  down  towards  its  mouth.  Th(,>n  they 
came  to  great  cliffs,  which  gathered  round  and  closed 
over  tliern.  But  the  river  ran  on  beneath  these,  and 
ever  on  far  underground,  deeper  and  deei)er  in  the 
earth,  till  it  dashed  headlong  into  rapids,  among  rocks 
and  ravines,  and  under  cataracts  which  were  so  hor- 
rible that  death  seemed  to  come  and  go  with  every 
plunge  of  the  canoe.  And  the  water  grew  narrower 
and  the  current  more  dreadful,  and  fear  came  upon 

mg,  bcg'g'iiig',  pilfering',  and  tah^-boarinq^  about  a  town.  The 
Passaniaquodily  Iiidiaus  have  peculiar  superstitious  as  regards 
killing  the  crow. 


GLOOSKAP    THE  DIVINITY.  61 

Marten  and  tho  woman,  so  that  tliey  died.  But  the 
Master  sat  with  silent  soul,  thou^ih  lie  sanii'  the  sonus 
of  niagie,  and  so  jjassed  into  the  night,  but  eauic 
forth  again  into  sunlight.  And  there  was  a  lonely 
wigwam  on  the  bank,  into  whieh  he  bore  Marten  and 
the  grandmother,  and  saying,  "- Xumchahae  !  arise  I  " 
lo,  they  arose,  and  deemed  they  had  only  sl('i)t.  And 
now  Glooskap  had  gained  the  greatest  power.^ 

This  ineident  of  i)assing  through  darkness,  on  a 
roaring  streaui  in  a  frail  bark,  before  emerging  to 
sunlight  or  illumination,  was  not  ouly  in  the  ancient 
heathen  myths.  W'e  are  reminded  of  it  by  the  storm 
through  whieh  Jesus  passed  with  tlie  disciples.  Tliat 
it  made  a  great  impression  \\\\o\\  the  Indians  is  shown 
by  its  being  told  of  Pnlewech,  the  Partridge,  who  is 
a  type  of  Glooskap,  and  who,  like  him,  makes  war 
on  the  powers  of  evil,  set  foi'th  in  the  Porcupines. 
The  Indians,  who  imagined  and  selected  so  many 
wild  and  terrible  tests  to  form  the  Shaman,  or  sor- 
cerer, as  well  as  the  warrior,  would  hardly  neglect 
that  of  de  profioulifi  clajnari,  the  storm,  the  waves, 
dai'kness,  and  the  roaring  Hood. 

If  there  is  really  any  Norse  influence  in  this  tale, 
this  river  must  be  the  one  mentioned  in  the  Vaf- 
thrudnismal,  — 

^  This  incident  of  the  passage  underground  is  deeply  sugges- 
tive of  "Wabeiio  mystery  and  initiation.  It  will  strike  every  stu- 
dent of  classic  lore  as  almost  identical  with  much  that  he  has 
read.  If  it  has  not  the  same  symbolical  meauiug  here,  it  has  ap- 
parently uoue  whatcvci". 


62  THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

"  Ifuig  the  stream  is  called 
whieh  earth  divides  between 
the  Jutiius  and  the  gods. 
Open  it  shall  run 
throughout  all  time. 
On  that  stream  no  iee  shall  be." 

It  will  be  observed  tliiit,  having-  gone  down  or  across 
this  stream,  Pulcwecli  finds  himself  iu  the  country  of 
the  Evil  sorcerers  ;  that  is,  eJotunheim.  To  concpiev 
a  river  among  the  Norse,  in  a  dream,  was  a  sign  of 
victory ;  to  be  carried  away  by  one  was  a  terrible 

omen. 

"  jNIethought  a  river  ran 

Througli  the  wlu)l(!  house, 
that  it  roared  violeully, 
rushed  over  the  benches, 
brake  the  feet  of  yon 
brothers  twain  ; 
Nothing  the  water  spared  ; 
Something  that  will  portend." 

(Atlamfd,  in  Groenlewzku,  25.) 

Of  the  Great  Worlds  which  Glooshap  made  in  the  Land. 
(iNIicmac,  Passamaquoddy,  Penobscot.) 

Over  all  the  Land  of  the  Wabanaki  there  is  no 
place  which  was  not  marked  by  the  hand  of  the  Mas- 
ter. And  it  is  to  be  scon  on  hills  and  rivers  and 
great  roads,  as  well  as  mighty  rocks,  which  were  in 
their  day  living  monsters. 

For  thoi-e  is  a  very  wonderful  highway  from  Cw^cs- 
owra  legeki  to  Parrsborough,  running  parallel  with 
^  Hardwood  Point,  Fort  Cumberland. 


GLOOSKAP   THE  DIVINITY.  63 

the  river  now  called  llebert,  and  this  roiid  is  culled 
by  Iiidiiins  Oii-wokun,  the  Ciiusewjiy,  but  by  white 
men,  or  the  J^lesinaiii,  the  Boar's  Back.  For  it  is 
said  that  he  meant  to  visit  Partridge  Ishmd  and 
Cape  Blomidon,  but  they  who  were  with  hiui  had  got 
tired  of  the  sea,  and  wished  to  cross  over  by  land. 
And  while  they  were  resting  and  getting  ready  for 
their  trip  across,  the  ^Master,  raising  his  magle  i)ower 
to  a  great  deed  to  be  spoken  of  forever,  went  away  a 
little  time,  and  cast  up  a  great  and  beautiful  level 
ridge,  throwing  it  over  l)ogs  and  streams  ;  and  on  this 
they  traveled,  rejoicing,  and,  having  reached  the  isl- 
and, awaited  him. 

And  yet  again  the  Master  did  a  mighty  deed.  It 
came  to  pass  in  those  days  that  the  Beavers  had  built 
a  dam  across  from  Utkoguncheek,  or  Cape  Blomidon, 
to  the  o})posite  shore,  and  thereby  made  a  i)ond  that 
filled  all  the  valley  of  Annapolis.  Now  in  those 
times  the  Beavers  were  monstrons  beasts,  and  the 
Master,  though  kind  of  heart,  seems  to  have  had  but 
little  love  for  them  ever  since  the  day  when  (^wali- 
beetsis,  the  son  of  the  Great  Beaver,  tempted  ]Malsum 
to  slay  his  brother.  Now  the  bones  of  these  Beavers 
may  be  found  to  this  day,  and  many  tliere  are  on 
Oonamahgik,  and  their  teeth  are  six  inches  across, 
and  there  are  no  such  qiraJi-hcct  to-day.^  And  these 
are  the  remains  of  the  Beavers  who  ])uilt  the  dam  at 
Cape  Blomidon  and  forded  the  Anna})oIis  Valley. 

^  Both  Mr.  Raiul  and  mysolf  have  hoeii  .solemnly  assnred  by 
Indians  who  had  seen  those  antediluvian  remains  that  they  are 
the  petrified  relies  of  Glooskap's  victims. 


G4  THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

Now  Glooskap  would  have  a  hunt  and  do  a  deed 
which  should  ocjual  the  gri'at  whale-llshing  of  Kit- 
l)ooseeoj;-unow.  So  he  cut  the  great  dam  near  the 
shore,  and  bade  Marten  wateh  ;  tor  he  said,  "  I  mis- 
trust that  there  is  a  little  Beaver  hidinji"  hereabouts." 
And  when  the  dam  was  cut  from  where  it  joined  the 
shore  there  was  a  mighty  rush  of  many  waters,  so  that 
it  swung  round  to  the  westward,  yet  it  did  not  break 
away  from  the  other  shore.  Therefore  the  end  of  it 
lodged  with  a  great  sjjlit  therein  when  the  Hood  had 
found  a  free  course,  and  the  whole  may  be  seen  there 
still,  even  to  this  day,  and  may  be  seen  by  all  of  those 
who  pass  up  the  bay;  and  this  jjoint,  or  Cai)e  Sjdit, 
is  called  by  the  iMiemaes  Pleegun,  which,  being  inter- 
preted, means  the  opening  of  a  beaver  dam. 

Then,  to  frighten  the  Beaver,  Glooska})  threw  at  it 
a  few  handfuls  of  earth,  and  these,  falling  somewhat 
to  the  eastward  of  Partridge  Island,  became  the  Five 
Islands.  And  the  pond  which  was  left  was  the  Basin 
of  Minas. 

And  yet  another  tradition  tells  that,  after  cutting 
the  dam,  Glooskap  sat  and  watched,  but  no  beaver 
came  out ;  ^  for  Qvah-heet  had  gone  out  of  a  back 
door.  So  he  took  a  rock  and  threw  it  afar,^  —  one 
hundred  and  fifty  miles,  —  to  scare  the  Beaver  back 
again  ;  but  the  lieaver  had  gone  over  the  Grand  Falls, 
and  the  stone  remaineth  there  even  to  this  day. 

1  This  is  the  Anglo-Tndian  manuscript,  already  referred  to. 

2  "  He  toek  Rock  tructed  150  miles  ip  River  to  sker  beaber 
bock  down,  but  beaber  Las  gone  ober  graiifalls." 


GLOOSKAP   THE  DIVINITY,  C6 

The  Start/  nf  Gloosltip  as  tolil  hi  a  few  Worth  by  a  Wotiuin 

of  the  reno/isruts.  ^ 


"(llus-giihbu  gave  luinics  to  ovciytliiiig.  He  iiuulo 
men  iiiul  gave  them  life,  and  made  the  winds  to  make 
the  watt'iv4  move.  The  Tnrtle  wa§  his  luieh,'  ;  the 
Mink,  Uk-.sec-7?icc:a'l,  his  adopted  son;  and  J/oinn- 
kicassos,  the  AVooih'huek,  Ids  grandmother.  The 
Beaver  bnilt  a  great  dam,  and  Ghis-gahhe  turned  it 
away  and  kilk'd  the  Jieaver.  At  Moose-tehiek  ho 
killed  a  moose  ;  the  bones  maybe  seen  at  ]>ar  Har- 
bor turned  to  stone.  He  threw  the  entrails  of  the 
Moose  across  the  bay  to  his  dogs,  and  they,  too,  may 
be  seen  there  to  this  day,  as  I  myself  have  seen  them ; 
and  there,  too,  in  the  roek  are  the  prints  of  his  bow 
and  arrow."  ^ 

^  ^liuiy  a  ])la('o  is  pointed  out  as  the  locality  oi'  tlic  same 
lc<;^oii(l.  Ill  addition  to  tlioso  in  New  I>ruiis\vii'k  and  Bar  Har- 
bor, Thoreau  found  another  in  Maine,  which  he  tlnis  de- 
serihes  :  — 

"  While  wc  were  crossinj^  this  hay  "  (that  is,  the  month  of  ]\Ioose 
lliver),  "where  Mount  Kineo  rose  dark  before  us,  witiiin  t\v()  or 
three  miles,  the  Indian  repeated  the  tradition  respecting  this 
mountain's  having-  been  anciently  a  cow  moose, —  how  a  mighty 
Indian  hunter,  whose  name  I  forget,  succeeded  in  killing  this 
queen  of  the  moose  tribe  with  great  diiliculty,  while  her  calf  was 
killed  somewhere  among  the  islands  in  Penobscot  Bay  ;  and  to 
his  eyes  this  mountain  had  still  the  form  of  the  moose  in  a  re- 
clining posture,  its  })recipitous  side  presenting  the  outline  of  her 
head.  He  told  this  at  some  lengtii,  tiiougli  it  did  not  amount  to 
much,  and  with  apparent  good  faith,  and  asked  us  how  we  sup- 
posed the  hunter  coidtl  have  killed  such  a  mighty  noose  as  that  ; 
5 


66       THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

How    Glooslcap,    leaving/    the    World,    all    the    Animals 

mourned  for  him,  and  how,  ere  he  dejiarted,  he  gave 

Gifts  to  Men. 

(Micmae.) 

Now  Glooskap  had  freed  the  world  from  all  the 
mighty  monsters  of  an  early  time :  the  giants  wan- 
dered no  longer  in  the  wilderness ;  the  cuUo  terrified 
man  no  more,  as  it  spread  its  wings  like  the  cloud  be- 
how  we  could  do  it.  Whereupon  a  man-of-war  to  fire  broad- 
sides into  her  was  suggested,  etc.  An  Indian  tells  such  a  story 
as  if  he  thought  it  deserved  to  have  a  good  deal  said  about  it, 
only  he  has  not  got  it  to  say;  and  so  he  makes  up  for  the  de- 
ficiency l)y  a  drawling  tone,  long-windedness,  and  a  dumb  won- 
der which  he  hopes  will  be  contagious." 

This  concluding  criticism  is  indeed  suigularly  characteristic 
of  Mr.  Thoreau's  own  nasal  stories  about  Nature,  but  it  is  as 
utterly  untrue  as  ridiculous  when  applied  to  any  Indian  story- 
telling to  which  I  have  ever  listened,  and  I  have  known  the  near 
relatives  of  the  Indians  of  whom  he  speaks,  and  heard  many 
of  them  tell  their  tales.  This  writer  passed  months  in  Maine, 
choosing  Penobscot  guides  expressly  to  study  them,  to  read  In- 
dian feelings  and  get  at  Indian  secrets,  and  this  account  of 
Glooskap,  whoso  name  he  forgets,  is  a  fair  specimen  of  what 
he  learned.  Yet  he  could  in  the  same  book  write  as  follows : 
"  The  Anglo-American  can  indeed  cut  down  and  grub  up  all 
this  waving  forest,  aiul  make  a  stump  and  vote  for  Buchanan 
on  itj  ruins  ;  but  he  cannot  converse  with  the  spirit  of  the  tree 
he  fells,  he  cannot  read  the  poetry  and  mythology  which  retires 
as  he  advances." 

If  Mr.  Thoi-eau  had  known  the  Indian  legend  of  the  spirit  of 
the  fallen  tree — and  his  guide  knew  it  well  —  he  might  have 
been  credited  with  speaking  wisely  of  the  poetry  and  mythology 
which  he  ridicules  the  poor  rural  Yankees  for  not  possessing. 


GLOOSKAP   THE  DIVINITY.  67 

tvveen  him  and  the  sun  ;  the  drcatlful  Chenoo  of  the 
North  devoured  him  not ;  no  evil  beasts,  devils,  and 
serpents  were  to  be  found  near  his  home.  And  the 
Master  Jiad,  moreover,  taught  men  the  arts  which 
made  them  ha}>pier  ;  but  tliey  were  not  grateful  to  liim, 
and  though  th(.'y  worshiped  him  they  were  not  the  less 
wicked. 

"  Now  when  the  ways  of  men  and  beasts  waxed  evil 
they  greatly  vexed  Cilooskap,  and  at  length  he  could 
no  longer  endure  them,  and  he  made  a  rich  feast  by 
the  shore  of  the  great  Lake  ]Minas.  All  the  beasts 
came  to  it,  and  when  the  feast  was  over  he  got  into 
a  great  canoe,  and  the  beasts  Lx^ked  after  him  till 
they  saw  him  no  more.  And  after  they  ceased  to 
see  him,  they  still  heard  his  voice  as  he  sang ;  but 
the  sounds  grew  fainter  and  fainter  in  the  distance, 
and  Dt  last  they  wholly  died  away ;  and  tiien  deep 
silen(!e  fell  on  them  all,  and  a  great  marvel  came 
to  pass,  and  the  beasts,  who  had  till  now  spoken  but 
one  language,  were  no  longer  able  to  understand  each 
other,  and  they  fled  away,  each  his  own  way,  and 
never  again  have  they  met  together  in  council.  Until 
the  day  when  Glooskap  shall  return  to  restore  the 
Golden  Age,  and  make  men  and  animals  dwell  once 

Such  a  writer  can,  indeed,  poop  and  botanize  on  the  grave  of 
Mother  Nature,  but  never  evoke  her  spirit. 

The  moving  the  ishuid  is  evidently  of  Eskimo  origin,  since 
Crantz  (Ilistonj  of  Greenland)  hoard  nearly  the  same  story  of 
some  magit'ian-giant.  It  was  probably  suggested  by  the  very 
common  lloatiug  away  of  ice-islands. 


68  THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

more  together  in  amity  and  peace,  all  Nature  mourns. 
And  tradition  says  that  on  his  departure  from  Acadia 
the  Great  Snowy  Owl  retired  to  tlie  deej)  forests,  to 
return  no  more  imtil  lie  could  come  to  welcome  Gloos- 
kap  ;  and  in  those  sylvan  deptlis  the  owls  even  yet  re- 
peat to  the  night  Koo-koo-shoos  !  which  is  to  say  in  the 
Indian  tongue,  '  Oh,  I  am  sorry  I  Oh,  I  am  sorry  ! ' 
And  the  Loons,  who  had  been  the  huntsmen  of  Gloos- 
kap,  go  restlessly  up  and  down  through  the  world, 
seeking  vainly  for  their  master,  whom  they  cannot 
find,  and  wailing  sadly  because  they  find  him  not."  ^ 

But  ere  the  Master  went  away  from  life,  or  ceased 
to  wander  in  the  ways  of  men,  he  bade  it  be  made 
known  by  tlie  Loons,  his  faithful  messengers,  thai  be- 
fore his  departure  years  would  i)ass,  and  that  whoever 
would  seek  him  might  have  one  wish  granted,  what- 
ever that  wisli  might  be.  Now,  though  the  journey 
was  long  and  the  trials  were  terrible  which  those  must 
endure  who  would  fhid  (ilooskap,  there  were  still  many 
men  who  adventured  them.^ 

Now  ye  shall  hear  who  some  of  these  were  and 

*  This  passage  is  one  of  seven  on  the  subject  of  Clooskap,  cited 
in  Osgood's  Maritime  Provinces,  without  giving  cither  the  name 
of  the  author  or  the  hook  from  whit-li  tlicy  were  taken. 

-  There  is  a  great  end)arrassuient  of  riches,  or  rather  a  great 
wealth  of  enibairassnient,  as  regards  this  chapter.  In  the  Rand 
manuscript  there  are  three  histories  of  the  adventures  of  the  pil- 
grims who  sought  Clooskaj).  Another  and  very  different  was 
given  to  me  by  John  Gabriel.  In  one  account  there  are  three 
travelers,  in  another  four  ;  others  speak  of  seven  and  twelve. 
Finally,  there  are  many  incidents  which  apparently  belong  to 


GLOOSKAP   THE  DIVIMTY.  69 

what  happonetl  to  tlirm.  And  this  is  the  first  tale  as 
it  was  toUl  me  iu  the  tent  of  fJohu  Gabriel,  the  Passa- 
ina(|uotl(ly. 

AN'hen  all  men  had  heard  that  Glooskap  wonld  grant 
a  wish  to  any  one  who  would  come  to  him,  three  In- 
dians resolved  to  try  this  thin;^;' ;  and  one  was  a  ^lali- 
seet  from  St.  John,  and  the  other  two  were  Penobseots 
from  Old  Town.  And  the  path  was  long-  and  tlie  way 
was  hard,  and  they  suffered  nuieh,  and  they  were  seven 
years  on  it  ere  they  eanie  to  him.  But  while  they 
were  yet  three  months'  journey  from  his  dwelling, 
they  heard  the  barking  of  his  dogs,  and  as  they  drew 
nearer,  day  by  day,  it  was  louder.  And  so,  after  great 
trials,  they  found  the  lord  of  men  and  beasts,  and  he 
made  them  welcome  and  entertained  them. 

But,  ere  they  went,  he  asked  them  what  they  want- 
ed. And  the  eldest,  who  was  an  honest,  simple  man, 
and  of  but  little  account  among  his  people,  because 
he  was  a  bad  hunter,  asked  that  he  might  excel  in  the 
killing  and  catching  of  game.  Then  the  Master  gave 
him  a  flute,  or  the  magic  pipe,  which  ])leases  every 
ear,  and  has  the  power  of  persuading  every  animal  to 
follow  him  who  plays  it.  And  he  thanked  the  lord, 
and  left. 

Now  the  second  Indian,  being  asked  what  he  would 

this  part  of  the  Glooskap  cycle,  scattered  here  and  there  in  dif- 
ferent disconnected  Icfi^ends. 

Mrs.  W.  Wallace  Brown  was  told  hy  the  Passania(iuoddy  In- 
dians that  when  Gh)oskap  departed  he  took  with  him  the  k.\\\^  of 
each  of  the  different  kinds  of  animals  ;  so  that  tlu;  \volves,  louns, 
etc.,  inonrn  not  only  for  the  lord,  but  lor  their  masters. 


70       THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

have,  roj)lied,  The  love  of  many  women.  And  when 
Cilooska])  askotl  how  many,  he  said,  "  I  care  not  how 
many,  so  that  there  are  but  enough  of  them,  and  more 
than  enough."  At  liearing  this  the  ^Master  seemed 
displeased,  but,  smiling  anon,  ho  gave  him  a  bag  which 
was  tightly  tied,  and  told  him  not  to  open  it  until  he 
had  reached  his  home.  So  he  thanked  the  lord,  and 
left. 

Now  the  third  Indian  was  a  gay  and  handsome  but 
foolish  young  follow,  whose  whole  heart  was  set  on 
making  people  laugh,  and  on  winning  a  welcome  at 
every  merry-making.  And  he,  being  asked  what  he 
would  have  or  what  he  chiefly  wanted,  said  that  it 
would  ])lease  him  most  to  be  able  to  mal<:e  a  certain 
quaint  and  marvelous  sound  or  noise,^  which  was  fre- 
quent in  tliose  primitive  times  among  all  the  Waba- 
naki,  and  which  it  is  said  may  even  yet  be  heard  in  a 
few  sequestered  wigwams  far  in  tho  wilderness,  away 
from  men  ;  there  being  still  here  and  there  a  deep  ma- 
gician, or  n^aii  of  mystery,  who  knows  the  art  of  pro- 
ducing it.  And  the  pro})erty  of  this  wondrous  sound 
is  such  that  they  who  hear  it  must  needs  burst  into  a 
laugh;  whence  it  is  the  cause  that  the  men  of  these 
our  modern  times  are  so  sorrowful,  since  that  sound  is 
no  more  heard  in  the  land.  And  to  him  Glooskaj)  was 
also  affable,  sending  ]Marten  into  the  woods  to  seek  a 
certain  mystical  and  magic  root,  which  when  eaten 
would  make  the  miracle  the  young  nuin  sought.  But 
he  warned  him  not  to  touch  the  root  ere  he  got  to  his 

^  Pedere,  crepitarc. 


GLOOSKAP   THE  DIVINITY.  71 

home,  or  it  would  be  the  worse  for  him.  And  so  ho 
kindly  thanked  the  lord,  and  left. 

It  had  taken  seven  years  to  come,  bnt  seven  days 
were  all  that  was  reqnired  to  tread  the  i)ath  returning 
to  their  home,  that  is,  for  him  who  got  there.  Only 
one  of  all  the  three  beheld  his  lodge  again.  This  was 
the  hunter,  who,  with  his  pipe  in  his  pocket,  and  not  a 
care  in  his  heart,  trudged  through  the  woods,  satisfied 
that  so  long  as  he  should  live,  there  would  always  be 
venison  in  the  larder. 

But  he  who  loved  women,  and  had  never  won  even 
a  wife,  was  filled  with  anxious  wishfulness.  And  he 
had  not  gone  very  far  into  the  woods  before  he  opened 
the  bag.  And  there  flew  out  by  hundreds,  like  white 
doves,  swarming  all  about  him,  beautiful  girls,  with 
black  burning  eyes  and  flowing  hair.  And  wild  with 
passion  the  winsome  witches  threw  their  arms  ai)out 
him,  and  kissed  him  as  he  responded  to  their  em- 
braces;  but  they  came  ever  more  and  more,  wilder 
and  more  passionate.  And  he  bade  them  give  way, 
but  they  would  not,  and  he  sought  to  escape,  but  he 
could  not ;  and  so  panting,  crying  for  breath,  smoth- 
ered, he  perished.  ^Vnd  those  who  came  that  way 
found  him  dead,  but  what  became  of  the  girls  no  man 
knows. 

Now  the  third  went  menily  onward  alone,  when 
all  at  once  it  flashed  upon  liis  mind  tliat  Glooskap 
had  given  him  a  present,  and  without  the  least  heed 
to  the  injunction  that  he  was  to  wait  till  he  had 
reached  his  home  drew  out  the  root  and  ate  it ;  and 


72       THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

scarce  had  he  done  this  ere  he  realized  that  he  pos- 
sessed the  power  of  uttering  the  weird  and  mystic 
sound  to  absohite  perfection.  And  us  it  rang  o'er  many 
a  hill  and  dale,  and  woke  the  oes  of  the  distant 
hills,  until  *t  was  answered  by  the  solemn  owl,  he  felt 
that  it  was  indeed  wonderfid.  80  he  walked  on  gayly, 
trumpeting  as  he  went,  over  hill  and  vale,  happy  as  a 
bird. 

But  by  and  by  he  began  to  weary  of  himself.  See- 
ing a  deer  he  drew  an  arrow  and  stealing  silently  to 
the  game  was  just  about  to  shoot,  when  despite  him- 
self the  wild,  unearthly  sound  broke  forth  like  a  de- 
mon's warble.  The  deer  bounded  away,  and  the  young 
man  cursed  !  And  when  he  reac;hed  Old  Town,  half 
dead  with  hunger,  he  was  worth  little  to  make  laugh- 
ter, tliough  tlie  honest  Indians  at  first  did  not  fail  to 
do  so,  and  thereby  somewhat  cheered  his  heart.  But 
as  the  days  went  on  they  wearied  of  him,  and,  life 
becoming  a  burden,  he  went  into  the  woods  and  slew 
himself.  And  the  evil  spirit  of  the  night-air,  even 
Bumole,^  or  Pumola,  from  whom  came  the  gift,  swooped 
down  from  the  clouds  and  bore  him  away  to  'Lahm- 
kek(]u',  the  dwelling  jjlace  of  darkness,  and  he  was  no 
more  heard  of  among  men. 

As  regards  the  destruction  of  the  giants  by  Gloos- 
kap,  it  may  be  observed  that  the  same  tradition  ex- 
ists  among  the    Six   Nations.     Cusick   tells   us  that 

1  For  an  account  of  Bumole,  or  Paniola,  see  the  cliaptor  on 
Supernatural  Beings.  Bumole  seems  to  have  been  the  personi- 
fication of  the  night-hawk. 


GLOOSKAP   THE  DIVINITY.  73 

about  12.')0  years  before  Colunibus  discovered  Amer- 
ica a  powerful  tribe  called  Otne-yar-heli,  that  is,  Stono 
Giants,  who  were  ravenous  (Jannibals,  overran  the 
country,  and  nearly  exteruiiuatcd  the  inhabitants. 
These  Stone  Giants  practiced  theniscdves  in  rolling  on 
the  sand ;  by  tlii;-  means  their  bodies  became  hard. 
Then  Tas-vnyawa-gon,  the  Ilohler  of  the  Heavens, 
came  to  earth  as  a  giant,  and,  being  made  their  chief, 
led  them  into  a  hollow,  where  he  overwhelmed  them 
with  rocks.  Only  one  escaped  to  the  far  North.  The 
reader  will  recognii'.o  in  these  the  Chcnoos,  or  Ke% 
wahqu',  who  cover  themselves  with  pitcli  and  roll  on 
the  ground.  But  no  one  can  deny  tiiat,  while  that 
which  Cusick  narrates  has  much  in  common  with  the 
mythology  of  the  AVabanaki,  it  is  much  less  like  that 
of  the  Edda;  that  Indian  grotcscjueness  has  in  it 
greatly  perverted  an  original ;  and  finally,  that  it  cer- 
tainly occupies  a  position  midway  between  the  mythol- 
ogy of  the  Northeastern  Algoutjuins  and  that  of  the 
Chi})pewas,  Ottawas,  and  other  Western  tribes.  Ex- 
amination shows  this  in  every  story.  Thus  the  Waba- 
naki  warrior  makes  his  bow  infallible  in  aim  by  string- 
ing it  with  a  cord  made  of  his  sister's  hair.  This  is 
Norse,  as  it  was  of  old  Latin.  But  in  the  Iroquois 
the  young  man  "  adorns  his  arms  with  the  hairs  of 
his  sister."  Here  the  tradition  has  begun  to  weaken. 
It  may  be  interesting  to  visitors  to  Niagara  to  know 
that  the  army  of  St(me  ( J iants  crossed  the  river  diu'- 
ing  their  journey  just  below  the  Falls. 


74  THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

How  Glooskap  had  n  great  Frolic  with  Kitpoosoaf/unou^  a 
Mi'jhtij  Giant  tvho  caught  a  Whale. 

(Micmac.) 

N'hah-vcc-no.  In  the  old  time  (P.)  Glooskap  came 
to  Pulewecli  Munegoo  (M.,  l^avtridj^e  Island),  and 
hero  he  met  with  Kitpooseagiinow,*  whose  mother  had 
been  slain  by  a  fearful  eannibal  giant.  And  it  was 
against  these  that  he  made  war  all  his  life  long,  as 
did  Glooskaj).  Whcnee  it  came  to  pass  that  they 
loved  one  another,  which  did  not  at  all  hinder  them 
from  having  a  hearty  and  merry  eneounter,  in  which 
they  missed  but  little  of  killing  one  or  the  other,  and 
all  in  the  best  natured  way  in  the  world. 

Now,  having  come  to  Pulcwech  Munegoo,  the  lord 

*  Kitpooseagunow,  "  one  born  after  his  mother's  death,"  is  a 
magician-giant,  who  plays  in  the  Algonquin  mythology  a  part 
only  inferior  to  that  of  Glooskap,  whom  he  in  every  way  resem- 
bles. Both  are  benevolent,  hotli  make  war  on  wicked  sorcerers 
and  evil  wild  beasts,  and  both,  finally,  are  much  like  Gai-gantua 
and  Pantagruel  in  their  sense  of  humor.  They  are  sometimes 
made  the  heroes  of  the  same  adventure  in  different  stories.  The 
true  origin  of  the  name,  .according  to  Mr.  Rand,  is  as  follows  : 
"  After  a  cow  moose  or  caribou  has  been  killed,  her  calf  is  some- 
times taken  out  alive,  and  reared  by  hand.  As  may  be  supposed, 
the  calf  is  very  easily  tamed.  The  animal  thus  born  is  called 
Kitpooseagunow,  and  from  this  a  verb  is  formed  which  denotes 
the  act."  —  Legends  of  the  Mic  Macs,  Old  Dominion  Monthly, 
1871. 

This  giant  was  .also  called  the  Protector  of  the  Oppressed.  He 
probably  represents  the  Glooskap  myth  in  another  form. 


GLOOSKAP   AND    KEANKE    SPEARING    "THE   WHALE. 


GLOOSKAP   THE  DIVIXITY.  If) 

of  men  and  boasts  was  cntcitainocl  l»y  Kitpoosoaj^u- 
now.  And  whon  tlie  night  canio,  ho  wiio  wjis  born 
aftor  his  niothor's  doath  said  to  his  guost,  *'  Let  us  go 
on  tho  sea  in  a  canoe  and  catch  whales  by  torchlight;" 
to  which  (jrlooskap,  nothing  h)ath,  consented,  for  ho 
was  a  mighty  fisherman,  as  arc  all  the  Wabanaki  of 
the  seacoast.^ 

Now  when  they  cauie  to  the  beach  there  were  only 
gi'cat  rocks,  lying  here  and  there  ;  but  Kitpoosca- 
gunow,  lifting  the  largest  of  these,  jiut  it  on  his  head, 
and  it  became  a  canoe.  And  j)icking  up  another,  it 
turned  to  a  paddle,  while  a  long  s})linter  which  he 
sjdit  from  a  leilge  seemed  to  be  a  spear.  Then  Gh)os- 
kap  asked,  "  \\'ho  shall  sit  in  the  stern  and  })a(hlle, 
and  who  will  take  the  spear?"  Kitpooseagunow 
said,  "  That  will  1."  80  (xlooskap  paddled,  and  soon 
the  canoe  passed  over  a  mighty  whale :  in  all  the  great 
sea  there  was  not  his  like  ;  but  he  who  held  the  spear 
sent  it  like  a  thunderbolt  down  into  the  waters,  and  as 
the  handle  rose  again  to  sight  he  snatched  it  up,  and 
the  great  fish  was  caught.  And  as  Ivitj)ooseagunow 
whirled  it  on  high,  the  whale,  roaring,  touched  the 
clouds.     Then  taking  him  from  the  i)oint,  the  fisher 

^  Glooskap  would    sooni  to  havt'  l)oen   the   prototN-jie  of   the 
giant  fisher  so  well  liiiown  in  song  :  — 

"  His  rod  was  made  of  a  ttiwdy  oak, 
His  line,  a  cal)le,  in  stomis  neV-r  broke  ; 
He  l)aited  his  hook  witii  a  draijon's  tail, 
And  sat  on  a  rock  and  bobln'd  for  whale. ' 

A  fahulous   nionstor,  aj)|)arcutly  identical  with   the    dragon,  is 
nommuu  in  Mieniae  stories. 


76       THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

tossed  him  into  the  bark  as  if  he  had  been  a  trout. 
And  the  giants  hiughed ;  the  sound  of  their  hmghter 
was  heard  all  over  the  land  of  the  AVabanaki.  And 
being  at  home,  the  host  took  a  stone  knife  and  split 
the  whale,  and  threw  one  half  to  the  guest  Glooskap, 
and  they  roasted  eaeh  his  pieee  over  the  lire  and  ate  it. 

Now  the  Master,  having  marked  the  light,  which 
was  long  in  the  heaven  after  the  sun  went  down,  said, 
"  The  sky  is  red  ;  we  shall  have  a  cold  night."  And 
liis  host  understood  him  well,  and  saw  that  he  would 
make  it  cold  by  magic.  So  he  bade  Marten  bring  in 
all  the  fuel  he  could  find,  and  all  there  was  of  the  oil 
of  a  porpoise  ;  and  this  oil  he  so  multiplied  by  magic 
that  there  was  ten  times  more  of  it.  And  they  sat 
them  down  and  smoked,  and  told  tales  of  old  times ; 
but  it  grew  ever  colder  and  cokler.  And  at  midnight, 
when  all  was  burnt  out,  ]\Iarten  froze  to  death,  and 
then  the  grandmother,  but  the  two  giants  smoked  on, 
and  laughed  and  talked.  Thou  the  rocks  out-of-doors 
split  with  the  cold,  the  great  trees  in  the  forest  split ; 
the  sound  thereof  was  as  thunder,  but  the  jNIaster  and 
he  who  was  born  after  his  mother's  death  laughed  even 
louder.  And  so  they  sat  imtil  the  sun  rose.  Then 
Glooskap  said  to  the  dead  woman,  ''  Noorjume^ 
numchahse  1 "  (M.)  Grandmother,  arise  !  "  and  to  his 
boy,  '-'- Ah%i>tanoocli  numchahne  ! '"  "  Marten,  arise  !  " 
and  they  arose,  and  went  about  their  work. 

And  the  morning  being  bright,  they  went  forth  far 
into  the  forest  to  find  game.  But  they  got  very  little, 
for  they  caught  only  one  small  beaver,  and  Glooskap 


GLOOSKAP   run  DIVINITY.  77 

gave  up  his  share  of  this  to  Kitpooseagimow.  x\iul 
he,  taking  the  skin,  fastened  it  to  liis  garter,  whence 
it  danuied  like  the  skin  of  a  mouse  at  the  knee  of  a 
tall  num.  But  as  ho  went  on  through  tlie  woods  the 
skin  grew  larger  and  larger  and  larger,  till  it  broke 
away  by  its  own  weiglit.  Then  the  giant  twisted  a 
mighty  sapling  into  a  withe,  and  fastened  it  around 
his  waist.  But  it  still  grew  apaee  as  he  went  on,  till, 
trailing  after,  it  tore  down  all  the  forest,  pulling  away 
the  trees,  so  that  Kitpooseagunow  left  a  clean,  fair 
road  behind  him.^ 

And  when  the  night  came  on  they  fished  again,  as 
they  had  done  before ;  and  again  it  was  said,  but  this 
time  by  the  host,  "  The  sky  is  red  ;  we  shall  have  a 
cold  night."  So  they  heaped  up  wood  more  than  the 
first  time,  but  now  it  was  far  colder.  And  soon  the 
boy  was  dead,  and  the  grandmother  also  lay  frozen. 
But  when  the  sun  rose  the  Master  brought  thetn  back 
to  life,  and,  bidding  good -by  to  Kitpooseagunow, 
went  his  way.^ 

^  Many  of  tliese  stories  liavo  received  later  additions,  which 
can  be  detected  l»y  their  occurring  only  in  single  versions  of 
tbv^'.n.  In  the  story  of  Kitpooseagunow  (Kand's  niannseript)  the 
ghuits arrive  at  a  "large  town,"  and  go  to  a  "store,"  where  they 
sell  the  skin  for  ixll  the  money,  goods,  houses,  and  lands  which 
the  merchant  possesses.  "  And  the  skin  was  sc  heavy  that  it  took 
the  greater  \)wi  of  the  daj'  to  weigh  it." 

'^  It  is  possible  that  there  is  a  version  of  this  story  in  which 
Glooskap  kills  his  friend  with  frost,  and  then  revives  liijn.  In 
one  story  it  is  i\. frozen  Mrcnm,  incarnate  as  a  man,  which  attemjits 
in  vain  to  fi-eeze  (glooskap. 

The  extraordiuury  manner  in  which  host  and  guest,  or  even 


78  THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

The  most  striking  feature,  however,  of  this  legend 
is  its  Norse-like  breadtli  or  grandeur  and  its  genial 
humor,  which  are  very  remarkable  characteristics  for 
the  fictions  of  savages.  Its  resemblance  to  the  Scan- 
dinavian tales  is,  if  accidental,  very  remarkable.  The 
two  heroes  are,  like  Thor  and  Odin,  giant  heroes  who 
make  war  on  J<5tuns  and  Trolls;  that  is,  giant-like 
sorcerers.  It  is  their  profession ;  they  live  in  it.  No 
one  can  read  Beowulf  or  the  Eddas  without  being- 
struck  by  the  gi-eat  resemblance  between  Grendel,  the 
hideous,  semi-human  night  prowler,  and  the  Kewahqu', 
a  precisely  similar  monster,  who  rises  from  the  depths 
of  waters  to  wantonly  murder  man.  I  do  not  recall 
any  two  beings  in  any  other  two  disconnected  mythol- 
ogies so  strangely  similar.  The  fishing  for  the  whale 
recalls  tliat  which  is  told  in  the  Older  Edda  (Hyniis- 
krida,  21),  where  Ilymir  succeeds  in  hooking  two  of 
these  fish  :  — 

"  Then  he  and  Ilymir  rowed  out  to  sea.  Thor 
rowed  oft  with  two  oars,  and  so  powerfully  that  the 
giant  was  obliged  to  acknowledge  they  were  speeding 
very  fast.     He  himself  rorved  at  the  'prowT 

If  the  reader  will  compare  this  account  of  the 
Edtla  with  the  Micmac  story,  he  cannot  fail  to  be 
struck  with  the  great  resemblance  between  them.     It 

intimate  friends,  endeavor  to  kill  one  another  in  the  most  <^ood- 
natiired  rivalry,  is  of  constant  occurrence  in  the  Eskimo  leffcnda. 
It  is  not  infrequent  among  our  own  backwoods  or  frontier-men. 

The  stone-canoe  occurs  in  Eskimo  legends  {vide  Iliuk),  as  it 
dues  iu  those  of  all  American  Indians. 


GLOOSKAP   THE  DIVINITY.  79 

is  even  specifiocl  in  both  that  the  hero,  though  a  guest, 
paddles.  And  in  l)()th  instances  the  host  catches  a 
whale.  Now  compare  with  this  the  legend  of  Mano- 
bozho-IIiawatha,  who  merely  catches  the  great  sun- 
fish,  and  is  swallowed  by  it.  Does  it  not  seem  as  if 
the  Western  Indians  had  here  borrowed  from  the 
Micmacs,  and  the  Mic^macs  from  the  Norse  ?  AVhether 
this  was  done  directly  or  through  the  Eskimo  is  as  yet 
a  problem.  It  may  also  be  noted  that  both  in  the 
Edda  and  in  the  Micmac  story,  it  is  declared  that  one 
of  the  giants  i)icked  up  the  boat  and  carried  it. 

It  may  be  observed  that  most  of  these  Indian  tra- 
ditions were  originally  poems.  It  is  probable  that  all 
were  sung,  while  they  still  retained  the  character  of 
serious  mythical  or  sacred  narrative.  Now  they  are 
in  the  transition  state  of  heroic  tales.  r>ut  they  un- 
questionably still  retain  many  pjisssages  of  very  great 
antiquity,  and  it  is  not  impossible  that  Eskimo  and 
even  Norse  songs  are  still  preserved  in  them.  In  this 
tale  the  follov;ing  CH)incidcnccs  with  passages  in  the 
Elder  Edda  (Ilymiskrida)  are  remarkable.  In  both 
the  host  asks  his  guest  to  go  with  him  to  catch 
whales,  to  which  the  latter  assents. 

"  '  We  tlirce  to-morrow  night 
Shall  1)0  conipelk'd 
On  what  wo  catch  to  live.' 
Thor  said  he  would 
On  the  sea  row." 

Kitpooseagunow  picks  up  the  heavy  canoe,  with  its 
oars  and  a  spear,  and  carries  them. 


80  THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

•*  Thor  went, 
grasped  the  prow 
quickly  with  its  hold-water, 
lifted  the  boat 
together  with  its  oars 
and  scoop  ; 
bore  to  the  dwelling 
the  curved  vessel." 

Glooskap  asks  which  of  the  two  shall  take  the  paddle, 
and  which  sit  in  the  stern.     Ilyniir  inquires,  — 

"  Wilt  thou  do 
half  the  work  with  me  ? 
either  the  whales 
home  to  the  dwelling  bear. 
Or  the  boat 
fast  bind  ?  " 

Kitpooseagimow  drew  up  a  whale. 

"The  mighty  Ilymir, 
He  alone 
two  whales  drew 
up  with  his  hook." 

After  this  whale-fisliing,  the  Scandinavian  giants  at 

home  have  a  trial  of  strength  and  endurance.     Thor 

throws  a  cup  at  Ilymir.     This  cup  can  only  be  broken 

on  Ilymir's  head,  which  is  of  ice,  and  intensely  hard. 

"  That  is  harder 
than  any  cup." 

This  is  therefore  an  effort  on  the  part  of    Thor  to 

overcome  Cold.     Ilymir  is  the  incarnation  of  Cold 

itself. 

"  The  icebergs  resounded 

as  the  churl  approached  ; 


GLOOSKAP   THE   DIVINITY.  81 

the  thicket  oti  his  cheeks 
was  frozen. 

Ill  shivers  flew  the  piUars 
At  the  Jotuii's  ghiuce." 

That  is,  the  frost  cracks  the  stones  and  rocks.  In 
the  Indian  tale  the  two  giants  try  to  see  which  can 
freeze  the  other.  In  both  there  is  distinctly  a  con- 
test. In  the  Norse  tale  Strength  or  Heat  fights  Frost ; 
in  the  American,  Frost  is  battled  with  by  Frost  as  a 
rival. 

It  may  be  observed  that  the  Indian  tale  is  far  from 
being-  perfect,  and  that  in  all  i)r()))ability  the  whole  of 
it  includes  a  fishing  for  the  sea-serpent. 

It  is  plainly  set  forth  in  the  Edda  that  Cold  may 
be  overcome  by  a  magic  spell.  Thus  Groa  (Grou- 
galdr,  12)  promises  her  son  a  rune  to  effect  this  :  — 

"  A  seventh  (cliarm)  I  will  sing  thee  : 
If  on  a  luoiintain  high 
frost  should  assail  thee, 
deadly  cold  shall  not 
thy  body  injure, 
nor  draw  it  to  tliy  limhs." 

Horv  Glooskap  made  a  Magician  of  a  Young  Man,  who 
aided  another  to  win  a  Wife  and  do  Wonderftd  Deeds. 

(Micmac.) 

It  is  well  known  unto  all  Indians  who  still  ke(^p  the 

true  faith  of  the  olden  time  that  there  are  wondrous 

dwellers  In  the  lonely  woods,  such  as  elves  and  fairies, 

called  l)y  the   ]Micmacs    Mikumiccssos,    and    by  the 

Passamaquoddies    Oojiahr/awessos.     And    these   can 
6 


82  THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

work  great  wonders,  aiitl  also  sing  so  as  to  charm 
the  wihlest  beasts.  From  tliem  alone  come  the  nia<xic 
pipes  or  flutes,  which  sometimes  pass  into  })ossession 
of  noted  sorcerers  and  great  warriors  ;  and  when  these 
are  played  uj)on,  the  woman  who  hears  the  melody  is 
bewitched  with  love,  and  the  moose  and  caribou  follow 
the  sound  even  to  their  death.  And  wlien  the  Mecju- 
mawessos  are  pleased  with  a  mortal  they  make  him 
a  fairy,  even  like  themselves. 

N^ Kama y 00,  In  old  times  there  was  an  Indian 
village,  and  in  it  were  two  young  men,^  who  had  heard 
that  Cilooska}),  ere  he  left  the  world,  would  Ix.'stow  on 
those  who  came  to  him  whatever  they  wanted.  So 
they  went  their  way,  an  exceeding  long  pilgrimage, 
until  they  came  to  a  gTcat  island,  where  he  dwelt. 
And  there  they  first  met  with  Dame  Bear  and  Marten, 
and  next  with  the  Master  himself.  Then  they  all, 
sitting  down  to  supper,  had  jilaced  before  them  only 
one  extremely  small  dish,  and  on  this  there  was  a 
tiny  bit  of  meat,  and  notliing  more.  But  being  a  bold 
and  jolly  fellow,  tlie  first  of  the  pilgrims,  thinking 
himself  mocked  for  sport,  cut  off  a  great  part  of  the 
meat,  and  ate  it,  when  that  which  was  in  the  dish 
grew  in  a  twinkling  to  its  former  size ;  and  so  this 
went  on  all  through  the  supper,  every  one  eating  his 
fill,  the  dish  at  the  end  being  as  full  as  ever. 

Of   these   two,  one  wished   to   become  a  Mikum- 

1  According  to  another  IMicmac  version  of  this  legend,  the 
ekler  of  these  pilgrims  was  Keekwahjoo,  the  Badger,  and  the 
younger  Caktoogwasees,  or  Little  Thunder. 


GLOOSKAP    THE  DIVINITY.  83 

wess,  and  the  other  to  win  a  very  beautiful  girl,  the 
daughter  of  a  great  ehief,  who  imposed  sueh  cruel 
tasks  on  all  who  came  for  her,  that  they  died  in  at- 
tempting them. 

And  the  first  was  taken  by  Glooskap  ;  and  after  he 
had  by  a  merry  trick  covered  him  with  filtli  and  put 
him  to  groat  shame,  ho  took  him  to  the  river,  and  after 
washing  him  clean  and  comlting  his  hair  gave  him  a 
change  of  raiment  and  a  hair  string  of  exceeding 
great  magic  virtue,  since  wlion  he  had  bound  it  on  ho 
became  a  Mikumwess,  having  all  the  power  of  the 
elfin- wo  rid.  And  also  because  ho  desired  to  excel 
in  singing  and  music,  the  Master  gave  him  a  small 
pil)o,  and  it  was  that  which  cliarmod  all  living  beings ;  * 
and  then  singing  a  song  bade  him  join  in  with  him. 
And  doing  this  ho  found  that  ho  could  sing,  and  ever 
after  had  a  wondrous  voice. 

Now  to  seek  the  beautiful  girl  It  was  necessary  to 
sail  afar  over  the  sea  ;  and  during  tliis  adventure  the 
Mikumwess  was  charged  to  take  care  of  the  younger 
pilgrim.  So  ho  begged  the  Master  to  lend  him  his 
canoe.  And  Glooskap  answered,  "  Yes,  I  will  do  this 
for  thee,  if  thou  wilt  honestly  return  it  when  thou 
needest  it  no  more.     Yet   in  very  truth  I  did  never 

^  The  identity  of  these  incidents  with  those  of  "  classic  "  times 
is  worth  noting.  Th(>re  is  a  lustration  and  the  clotliing  the 
neophyte  in  a  new  garment,  and  he  receives  the  magic  fillet,  as 
in  the  Mysteries  of  the  old  world.  Xor  is  the  resemblance  of  the 
pipe  to  that  of  Orpheus  less  strihini;-.  In  many  respects  this  is 
the  most  remarkable  old  Indian  myth  I  have  ever  met  with. 


84       THE    ALdONQUIN  LEnENDS. 

yet  lend  it  to  mortal  man  hut  that  I  had  to  go  after 
it  myself.'*  ' 

'I'luM'enpon  the  young  man  promised  most  faithfully 
that  he  would  indeed  return  the  eanoe,  and  with  thi» 
they  got  them  ready  for  the  journey.  But  when  they 
came  to  the  bay  there  was  no  eaniu',  and  they  knew 
not  what  was  to  be  <lone.  But  (Jlooskap  pointed  to  a 
small  island  of  granite;  which  rose  amid  the  waves, 
and  it  was  eovered  with  tall  pin<!-trees.  *'  There  is 
my  canoe  I  "  said  he  ;  '^  and  when  he  had  taken  them 
unto  it,  it  became  a  real  eanoe,  with  masts,  and  they 
set  sail  on  it,  r(>joieing. 

So  they  came  in  time  to  a  very  large  island,  where 
they  drew  np  tlu;  eanoe  and  hid  it  in  the  busiuvs. 
Then  they  went  forward  to  seek  for  })eople,  and  found 

1  One  of  the  traits  oi"  honlinmic  and  connnon  humanity  which 
continually  oeenr  in  tlie  Tdooskap  tales,  even  in  the  most  serious 
situations  and  solemn  mvths.  In  this  respect  the  resenddaneo 
of  the  Northwest  Algoiuiuin  tales  to  the  Norse  is  truly  strik- 
ing. The  eanoe  is  anionij  all  Indians,  even  in  Central  America, 
exactly  what  the  und»ndla  is  in  civilized  society.  With  all  his 
immense  orijiinality  t!lo<^skap  had  a  nund>er  of  "old  Joes,"  of 
which  he  never  seems  to  hav(>  tired.  One  was  the  inexhaustible 
dish,  and  another  the  g;iant  skunk  set  upon  end  to  salute  his  vis- 
itors, and  this  of  the  eanoe  was  probably  the  commonest  of  all. 
He  is  a  true  Indian  divinity,  shiiiino^  like  the  lii^htning  and  striking 
only  when  there  is  a  storm,  but  appearing  like  the  Aiu'ora  Bo- 
realis,  or  even  the  Robin  (u)odfellow-Will-o'-the-Wisp  at  others. 

'^Another  standard  "piece  of  witt "  with  the  ineoi  vigible 
joker.  Glooskap's  "  fjoatinn;  island  "  was  served  up  as  a  dessert 
to  all  givests,  and  I  doubt  not  that  if  the  double  meaning  of  the 
word  had  been  kiiowu  to  him,  they  would  have  had  that  too. 


anOOSKAP   THE  DIVINITY.  85 

a  vill:i;^^(i  in  which  dwelt  tho  cliief  who  hud  the;  l)e:iuti- 
ful  thuigliU;r,  in  Hoekin;;  wlioiii  ho  many  ha<l  h>st  tlieir 
lives. 

And  haviiii;-  round  him,  tlicy  went  into  liis  wi^^wain, 
and  wore  phu-cd  on  tlic  scat  ol"  honor.  Now  wiicn  an 
Indian  Hceii.s  a  wife,  lie  or  his  nnjtir.d  f'licnd  inakcs 
no  groat  ado  nhout  it,  hut  utters  two  words,  which  tell 
tlio  whole  story.  And  these  are  Scwin-coadoo-yirdh- 
loo(pn('t\'w\\'wh  nie;in  in  Micniae,  "  I  am  tired  of  liv- 
ing' alone."  And  the  chief,  liearin^  this,  consented 
that  tlie  young  man  sliouM  many  licr  whom  he 
sought,  l)ut  on  (»ne  condition  :  and  tliis  was  tiiat  he 
sliouhl  shiy  and  l)rinL!;-  unto  him  tlie  liead  of  a  certain 
hoi-ned  diagon,  caUed  in  Micmae  (Jlicp'uhcaha}  So 
this  was  agT(!ed  nj)()n,  and  the  two  strangers  went  to 
the  wij^wam  whic^h  was  assijjned  them. 

Now  in  the  niglit  he  that  was  Mikinnwess  arose  and 
went  alone  and  afar  until  he  eaine  to  the  den  of  the 
dragon,  and  tliis  was  a  great  hole  in  tlie  ground.  And 
over  this  he  laid  a  mighty  log,  and  tlien  began  the 
magic  danee  aroinid  the  den.  So  tlu^  serpcmt,  or  the 
great  Chepichcalm,  hearing  the  call,  came  forth,  i)ut- 
ting  out  his  liead  after  the  manner  of  snakes,  wav- 
ing it  all  about   in  every  way  and  looking  round  him. 

*  Vide  "  Stiporii.'itural  lieiucfs."  The  Chepichcalm  (M.)  is  an 
immenso  lioniod  scrix'iit  or  wiii^^Icss  di-afj^on.  It  is  probaldy 
identical  with  the  Wi\vilhiiek(i'  (I*,  and  Pen.),  whieh  is  a  sinj^u- 
lar  lioined  wonn  found  on  tn^es  or  by  water.  It  is  believed  to 
be  capable  of  assuming  a  vast  size  and  to  bo  gifted  with  super- 
natural powers. 


86  THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

Wliilo  doing  this  ho  yvhUhX  his  neck  upon  tlio  log,  when 
th(^  Indian  with  u  hh)W  of  hi.s  hati'hot  soveri'd  it.  Then 
taking  tho  head  by  one  of  the  shining  yellow  horns  he 
l)oro  it  to  his  friend,  who  in  tho  morning  gave  it  to 
the  chief.  And  the  old  man  said  to  himself,  "  This 
time  I  fear  me  I  shall  lose;  my  child." 

Yet  tho  young  man  had  more  to  do  ;  for  the  chief 
said,  "  I  would  fain  see  my  son  coast  down  yonder 
hill  on  a  hand-sled."  Now  this  hill  was  an  exceed- 
ing high  mountain ;  tho  sides  thereof  were  ragged 
with  rocks  and  terrible  with  trees  and  ice.  Then 
two  toboiiuins  ^  were  brouiiht  out,  one  of  them  for 
the  two  strangers,  and  this  ho  that  was  Mikumwess 
was  to  direct.  And  on  the  other  were  two  powerful 
men,  and  these  were  both  hoo-oinak\^  who  h()i)ed  to 
see  tho  former  soon  fall  out,  and  then  to  run  over 
them.  And  at  the  word  they  went  flying  fearfr.lly 
down  the  mountain,  and  yet  ever  faster,  as  if  to 
death.  And  soon  he  that  sought  tho  girl  went  whirl- 
ing headlong  from  the  sled,  and  the  two  hon-oinah 
gave  a  loud  hurrah  ;  for  they  knew  not  that  this  had 
been  done  with  intent  by  the  INIikumwess,  that  he 
might  get  them  before  him.  So  he  put  forth  his 
hand,  and,  seizing  the  younger  man,  turned  a  little 
aside,  but  in  an  instant  went  on  after ;  and  erelong 
the  sled  of  the  hoo-oinah  stopped,  but  the  other, 
bounding  upwards  from  a  mighty  wall  of  ice,  flew  far 

^  Toboggin  ;  a  sled  or  sledge. 

^  INIagit'ians,  the  original  of  pow-wow-in.  It  is  apparently  the 
same  in  meaning  as  the  angakok  of  the  neighboring  Eskimo. 


GLOOSKAP   THE  DIVINITY.  87 

over  tlu'ir  liciuls  onwjinls ;  iior  did  it  stoj)  in  the  val- 
ley, l)iit,  running  with  troin«'n<h)us  speed  np  tiio  op- 
posite hill  and  into  the  vilhige,  struck  tlie  side  of  the 
chiefs  wigwam,  ripping  it  up  from  end  to  end  ere  it 
8top])(Ml.  And  tlie  old  man,  seeing  this,  saitl, '' Tiiis 
time  1  liave  lost  my  (hiughter  I  " 

Yet  the  young  man  had  more  to  do ;  for  the  chief 
said,  "  Thei'e  is  here  a  man  wlio  has  never  Ix-en 
beaten  in  running,  and  tliou  nnist  strive  witli  him 
in  that  and  overcome  him,  to  win  thy  wife."  And 
the  race  was  ap[>oiutcd  :  but  ere  it  came  off  he  that 
was  Mik'umwess  lent  to  his  friend  the  magic;  pipe  to 
give  him  })ower.^  And  when  he  that  was  the  racer 
of  the  village  met  the  young  man,  the  youth  said, 
"  Who  art  thou  ?  "  and  he  rci)lied,  ''  1  am  Wey-ad- 
esk "  (the  Noithcrn  Lights,  M.) ;  "  hut  who  art 
thou?"  And  he  answered,  "I  am  Wosogwodesk " 
(the  Chain  Liglitning).  And  they  ran.  In  an  in- 
stant they  were  no  longer  in  sight ;  they  wcjrc  far 
away  over  the  most  distant  hills.  Tluni  all  sat  and 
waited,  and  ere  it  was  noon  he  that  was  the  Chain 
Lightning  returned,  and  he  was  not  out  of  breath, 
nor  weary,  and  he  had  gone  round  the  world.  And 
at  evening  they  saw  the  Northern  Lights  return,  and 
he  trembled  and  quivered  with  fatigue  ;  yet  for  all 

^  It  may  be  observed  that  Indian  magic  depends  on  fcticli,  or 
objects  having  innate  power.  Ghmskap  himself  rebes  on  bis 
belt,  and  when  he  lends  it  to  Marten,  tiie  boy  becomes  "  mani- 
too,"  as  the  more  Western  Indians  term  it.  There  is  in  tbo 
early  red  Indian  mythology  really  uo  God ;  only  more  or  less 
powerful  magicians. 


88  THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

that  he  liad  not  hecii  round  the  world,  Imt  had  tuinod 
back.  And  tlio  oKl  chirt',  seeing  him  beaten,  ex- 
daiiiied,  ••  Tliis  time  I  shall  h)se  my  ehihl !  " 

And  yet  there  was  another  trial  of  the  younj^  man 
ore  he  eould  win  her  whom  he  wanted.  For  the 
chief  had  a  man  whom  no  one  could  overcome  in 
swinnninj^  and  divinj;-,  and  it  was  chieily  in  this  last 
thlui^  that  he  excelled.  And  the  youno-  man  must 
strive  with  him.  And  when  they  met  he  asked  the 
man  of  the  village  his  name,  and  he  rei)lied,  "  I  am 
an  U/>c/n(/>imoocch'"  (a  Sea  Duek,  M.)  ;  "but  who 
are  you?"  And  he  answered,'^!  am  a /uret'woo" 
(a  Loon,  M.).  So  they  dived,  and  after  a  time  the 
Sea  Duck  rose  again  for  breath,  but  those  who  waited 
waited  long  indeed  ere  tlu^y  saw  the  Loon.  And  an 
hour  passed,  and  he  came  not,  and  yet  another  ere  they 
beheld  him ;  but  when  he  at  hist  rose  the  old  chief 
said,  "  This  is  the  end  of  all  our  weary  work,  for 
this  time  truly  I  have  lost  my  child." 

Yet  it  was  not  the  end  of  the  wonderful  deeds 
which  were  done  in  that  village  by  the  i)ower  of  the 
great  Glooskap.  For  the  Mikurawess,  at  the  great 
dance  which  was  held  that  evening  at  the  wedding, 
astonished  all  who  beheld  him.  As  he  danced  around 
the  circle,  upon  the  very  hard  beaten  floor,  they  saw 
his  feet  sink  deeper  at  every  step,  and  ever  deeper  as 
the  dance  went  on ;  ploughing  the  ground  up  into 
high,  uneven  ridges,  forming  a  trench  as  he  v/ent, 
until  at  length  only  his  head  was  to  be  seen.^     And 

^  Tlii3  is  very  cliaracteristic  of  the  true  luagiciau,  both  in  the 


CJLOOSKAP   THE  DIViyiTY.  89 

this  ended  the  dancint;  for  tliat  ni^lit,  since  the  pp'onnd 
was  no  longer  to  be  daneed  \\\)o\\  l»y  anyl)ody  exi-opt 
wizards  and  witches. 

Then  the  youni;'  man  and  his  wife  and  the  ^Ilkuin- 
woss  entered  tlieir  canoe  and  sailed  hoonijk  (home- 
wards, M.).  And  yet  their  trials  were  not  over.^  For 
they  had  not  gone  far  ere  they  saw  an  awfnl  storm 
coming  to  meet  them ;  and  he  tliat  had  the  I'^Hin 
spells  knew  that  it  was  raised  by  hoo-oin,  or  sorcery, 
since  tlieso  storms  are  the  worst  of  all.  Then,  with- 
out fear,  he  rose,  and,  filling  his  lungs  and  i)ui'fing 
his  cheeks,  he  blew  against  the  temj)est,  vvmd  against 
wind,  until  he  blew  the  wind  away,  and  the  great 
water  was  aoohuncak\  as  calm  and  smooth  as  be- 
fore. 

So  they  sailed  on  over  the  sunlit  sea,  but  it  was 
not  long  before  the  Elf-gifted  saw  rising  among  the 

Alji^onquin  and  I^skimo  folk-loro.  "  Tho  aiuiakak,''''  or  sorcerer 
of  Greenland,  "iifter  uieetiiij^  with  toiimrsnk,  or  <^uiirdi;in  spirits, 
sometiiucs  manifested  it  by  his  feet  sinkinjr  into  the  roeky  j>n)und 
jmt  as  if  into  snow"  (Ruik.)  This  phrase  indicates  the  Northern 
ori<;'in  of  the  idea,  which  occurs  in  many  Indian  stories.  I  have 
been  assured  in  all  faiili  that  there  is  a  Passamacpioddy  mUcou- 
lin,  or  sorcerer,  now  living,  who  can  walk  up  to  his  knees  in  a 
floor  or  in  the  paved  street,  and  an  honest  and  trustworthy  In- 
dian assured  me  that  he  had  seen  him  do  it. 

*  These  subsequent  trials  were  not  inllicted  by  the  old  chief, 
but  were,  as  appears  by  comparison  willi  other  legends,  simply 
jokes  played  by  the  incorrigible  Glooskap.  It  is  most  probable 
that  in  its  original  form  this  remarkable  myth  was  all  maj/a,  or 
illusion,  and  the  whole  a  series  of  illusions,  caused  by  the  arch- 
conjurer,  typifying  natural  phenomena. 


90  THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

waves  far  before  tliem  a  dark  mass,  which  soon  proved 
to  be  a  tremendous  beast  coming"  to  attack  them.  And 
as  he  drew  near  they  saw  it  was  (^uahbeet,  the  giant 
beaver,  and  his  eyes  were  angry.^  But  the  Mikum- 
wcss,  seeing  this,  steered  straight  to  meet  the  monster, 
and,  coming  to  him,  said,  "  I  am  the  great  hunter  of 
beavers ;  lo,  I  am  their  butcher  ;  many  a  one  has 
fallen  by  my  hand/' ^  Now  the  Beaver  had  placed 
himself  under  water,  with  his  tail  out  of  it  and  rising 
upwards,  that  he  might  sink  the  canoe  with  a  blow 
thereof  ;  for  the  Beaver  strikes  mightily  in  such  wise, 
as  is  his  wont.  But  he  of  the  magic  power,  with  one 
blow  of  Lis  tomahawk,  cut  the  tail  from  the  body,  and 
sailed  onward. 

Yet  they  had  not  gone  far  ere,  on  rounding  a 
point,  they  saw  before  them  another  animal  of  giant 
size,  who  likewise  had  his  tail  in  the  air,  waiting  to 
overcome  them,  and  this  was  A-bekk-thee-lo  (^I.), 
the  Skunk.  Yet  ere  he  made  his  hideous  attack  the 
Mikumwess,  ever  on  the  watch,  caught  up  his  spear, 
and,  hurling  it,  pierced  A-bekk-thee-lo,  who  did  but 
kick  two  or  thi'ce  times  ere  he  died.  And,  stepping 
ashore,  he  who  had  slain  him  took  a  pole,  a  long  dead 
pine,  which  lay  upon  the  sand,  and,  transfixing  the 
Skunk,  lifted  him  high  in  air,  and,  planting  the  tree 

*  From  the  beginning;,  when  Qmhheetsii^,  the  son  of  the  Beaver, 
inspired  Malsumsis  with  hatred  of  Glooskap,  this  quadrnped  ap- 
pears as  an  enemy. 

'^  This  is  oddly  like  the  speech  of  the  beaver-killer  iu  The 
Hunting  of  the  SnarL 


GLOOSKAP   THE  DIVINITY.  91 

on  the  ground,  left  him,  saying  scornfully,  as  lie  left, 
'"''  Llk  cho  je  iKtlti!''''  which,  being  interpreted,  niean- 
eth,  "  And  now  show  your  tail  there  !  "  ^ 

So  they  returned  safely.  And  Glooskap  met  them 
at  the  landing,  and  his  first  words  were,  "  Well,  my 
friends,  I  see  that  you  have  brought  l)aek  my  canoe." 
And  they  answered,  "  We  have,  indeed."  Then  he 
inquired,  "  Has  all  gone  well  with  ye  ?  "  And  they 
replied  that  it  had.  Then  Glooskap,  laughing,  let 
them  know  that  in  all  they  had  experienced  he  had 
been  busy,  and  that  in  all  their  triumi)hs  he  had  had 
a  hand.  And  to  the  jVIikumwess  he  said,  "  Go  now 
thy  ways,  thou  and  these,  and  ever  lead  happy  lives : 
thou  amid  the  Elfin,  they  among  mankind.  And  be 
sure  of  this,  that  if  danger  or  trouble  should  como 
to  you,  you  have  but  to  think  of  me,  and  verily  aid 
will  come.     So  they  rose  and  went  to  their  wigwams.^ 

^  The  Skunk  is  hore  a  parody  on  the  Beaver. 

2  In  its  earlier  form  this  must  have  been  a  very  remarkable 
narrative,  or  poem.  That  the  two  combatants  in  the  race  were 
originally  the  personified  Northern  Lights  and  Lightning,  and 
that  these  were  not  merely  names  assumed  for  boasting,  is  shown 
by  the  incident  that  the  Lightning  actually  passed  round  the  ivorld, 
while  the  Aurora  Borealis  only  covered  a  portion  of  it.  The 
diving  is  either  a  later  addition,  or  it  represents  the  same  stu- 
pendous spirits  taking  on  the  a])pearance  of  mastering  the  ele- 
ment of  water  as  well  as  that  of  tire.  Without  carrying  the  Solar 
myth  theory  to  extremes,  it  cannot  be  denied  that  (ilooskap  ap- 
pears in  several  of  these  stories  as  Spring,  or  as  the  inciter  of  ice, 
the  conqueror  of  the  frozen  stream  and  of  the  iceberg.  In  this 
narrative  he  is  active  and  creative  Nature  itself,  directing  and 
sporting  with  the  waiTing  elements,     llis  vast  practical  joking 


92  THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

How  a  Certain  Wicked  Witch  sonyht  to  cajole  the  Great 
and  Good  Glooskap,  and  of  her  Piinishment. 

(Miciiiiic.) 

N'l'arncujoo^  of  old  time.  Once  it  came  to  pass 
that  Glooskap  met  with  an  evil  witch,  and  she  had 
made  herself  like  unto  a  fair  young'  girl,  and  believed 
that  he  could  not  know  who  she  was.  And  she  asked 
him  to  take  her  with  him  in  his  canoe.  So  they  sailed 
out  over  a  sunnner  sea  :   and  as  they  went  the  witch 

cannot  fail  to  remind  the  reader  yet  again  of  the  Norse  deities 
and  tlieir  jovial  lioiiseliold  godliood. 

This  tradition  is  Micniae,  and  taken  almost  entirely  from  Mr. 
Rand's  niannscript.  It  should  he  home  in  mind  that  it  is  not 
from  a  single  story  of  this  collection,  hut  from  a  careful  analysis 
and  comparison  of  them  all,  that  their  entire  value  is  to  be  as- 
certained. 

Certain  incidents  in  this  tale  deserve  special  attention.  The 
young  men  go  to  a  land  of  evil  sorcerers,  of  hoo-oin.  When  one 
is  re(]uired  to  run  a  race  he  conquers  because  he  is  really  the 
Lightning.  When  Thor  visits  Utgard  Loki,  there  is  also  a  race, 
in  wliich  llugi  wins,  because  he  is  llioiajht  disguised  as  a  man. 
Glooskap  has  a  canoe,  which  is  sometimes  immensely  large,  but 
which  at  other  tunes  shrinks  to  a  very  small  size.  In  the  Edda, 
Odin  is  said  to  have  had  made  for  him  by  the  dwarfs  a  boat, 
Skidbladnir,  which,  like  Glooskap's  bark,  exi)andcd  or  dimin- 
ished. Sigurd,  in  the  New  Edda,  is  obliged  to  kill  a  dragon, 
and  it  is  very  remarkal)le  that  he  does  it  by  a  special  previous 
preparation.  That  is  to  say,  he  digs  a  little  ditch,  and  when  the 
dragon  crawls  over  it  the  hero  pierces  him  with  his  sword.  la 
this  story  the  Indian  lays  a  log  over  the  dragon's  hole,  to  enable 
him  to  chop  his  head  off.  The  dragon,  or  horned  snake,  is  an 
old-time  tradition  in  iimerica,  or  pre-Columbian. 


GLOOSKAP   THE  DIVINITY.  93 

soufflit  to  beguile  him  with  sweet  words  ;  but  he  an- 
swei'cd  naught,  for  hu  wist  well  what  kind  of  passenger 
he  had  on  board.  And  as  they  went  on  she  played  her 
cajoleries,  but  he  remained  griiu  as  a  bear.  Then 
she,  being  angry,  showed  it,  and  tliere  arose  a  great 
storm.  The  wind  liowled  over  the  waves  as  they 
rose  and  fell,  like  white  wolves  jumping  while  they 
run,  the  first  lightnings  flashed,  and  the  sky  grew 
dark  as  night.  The  Master  was  angered  that  so  mean 
a  creature  dared  to  play  him  such  tricks,  and,  pad- 
dling the  canoe  to  the  beach,  he  leaped  ashore.  Then 
giving  the  bark,  with  the  witch  in  it,  a  push  out  to 
sea,  he  cried  to  her,  "'  Sail  thou  with  the  devil !  But 
never  be  in  human  form  again,  O  she-ljcast !  " 

Then  she,  being  frightened,  said,  ''  Master,  what 
wilt  thou  that  I  become  ?  "  And  he  replied,  "  What- 
ever thou  wait ;  that  grace  alone  I  give  thee."  And 
in  despair  she  plunged  into  the  waters,  and  became  a 
keegimihe,  a  ferocious  llsh,  which  has  upon  its  back  a 
great  fin,  which  it  shows  lilce  a  sail  when  swimming 
through  the  w^ater.  So  the  canoe  and  the  witch  be- 
came one  in  the  evil  fish,  and  the  Indians  to  this  day 
when  they  see  it,  cry,  "  See  the  witch,  who  was  pun- 
ished by  the  great  Master  !  " 

Now  of  sinful  men,  evil  beasts,  foul  sorcerers, 
witches,  and  giants,  there  were  in  those  days  many 
who  sought  to  do  great  harm  to  Glooskap  ;  but  of 
them  all  there  did  not  escai)e  any ;  verily,  no,  not  one.^ 

^  A  Micniac  story,  from  tlio  It;uul  nuuiuscript.  I  believe  that 
the  linh.  here  spokeu  uf  is  a  shark. 


94  THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

Of  other  Men  who  tvent  to  Glooskap  for  Gifts. 
(Mieiuac.) 

JVl'arnai/oo :  icood-enit-atohhagcn  Glooskcqj.  Of 
the  old  times :  this  is  a  story  of  Glooskaj).  Now 
there  went  forth  many  men  unto  CUooskap,  liearing 
that  they  coiikl  win  the  desires  of  their  hearts ;  and  all 
got  what  they  asked  for,  in  any  case ;  but  as  for  hav- 
ing wliat  they  wanted,  that  depended  on  the  wisdom 
with  which  they  wished  or  acted. 

The  good  Glooskap  liked  it  not  that  when  he  had 
told  any  one  evenly  and  i)lainly  what  to  do,  that  man 
should  then  act  otherwise,  or  double  with  him.  And 
it  came  to  pass  that  a  certain  fool,  of  the  kind  who 
can  do  nothing  unless  it  be  in  his  own  way,  made  a 
long  journey  to  the  Master.  And  his  trials  were  in- 
deed many.  For  he  came  to  an  exceeding  high  moun- 
tain in  a  dark  and  lonely  land,  where  he  heard  no 
sound.  And  the  ascent  thereof  was  like  a  smooth 
pole,  and  the  descent  on  the  other  side  far  worse,  for 
it  hung  over  the  bottom.  Yet  it  was  worse  bevond, 
for  there  the  road  lay  between  the  heads  of  two  huge 
sei'pents,  almost  touching  each  other,  who  darted  their 
terrible  tongues  at  those  who  went  between.  And  yet 
again  the  path  passed  under  the  Wall  of  Death.  Now 
this  wall  hung  like  an  awful  cloud  over  a  plain,  rising 
and  falling  at  times,  yet  no  man  knew  when.  And 
when  it  fell  it  struck  the  ground,  and  that  so  as  to 
crush  all  that  was  beneath  it. 

But  the  young  man  escaped  all  these  trials,  and 


GLOOSKAP   THE  DIVINITY.  95 

came  to  the  islanu  of  the  Great  JVIaster.  And  when 
ho  had  dwelt  there  a  certain  time,  and  was  asked 
what  he  would  have,  he  replied,  "  If  my  lord  will, 
let  him  give  me  a  medicine  which  will  cure  all  dis- 
ease." More  than  this  he  asked  not.  So  the  JVIas- 
ter gave  him  a  certain  small  })ackago,  and  said, 
"  Herein  is  that  which  thou  seekest  ;  but  I  charge 
thee  that  thou  lettest  not  thine  eyes  behold  it  until 
thou  shalt  reach  thy  home."  So  he  thanked  the  Mas- 
ter, and  left. 

But  he  was  not  far  away  ere  he  desired  to  open 
the  package  and  test  the  medicine,  and,  yet  more,  the 
truth  of  the  ^Master.  And  he  said  to  himself,  "-Truly, 
if  this  be  but  a  deceit  it  was  shrewdly  devised  to  bid 
me  not  open  it  till  I  returned.  For  he  knew  well 
that  once  so  far  I  would  make  no  second  journey  to 
him.  Tush  I  if  the  medicine  avail  aught  it  cannot 
change  In  aught."  So  he  opened  it,  when  that 
which  was  therein  fell  to  the  ground,  and  spread  it- 
self like  water  everywhere,  and  tliini  dried  away  like 
a  mist.  And  when  he  returned  and  told  his  tale,  men 
mocked  him. 

Then  again  there  were  three  ])rothers,  who,  liaving 
adventured,  made  known  their  wishes.  Now  the  lirst 
was  very  tall,  far  above  all  his  fellows,  and  vain  of 
his  comeliness.  For  he  was  of  those  wlio  put  bark  or 
fur  into  their  moccasins,  that  tliey  may  l^e  looked  up 
to  by  the  little  folk  and  bi;  loved  by  the  s(piaws  ;  and 
his  hair  was  plastered  to  stand  up  on  high,  and  on  the 
summit  of  it  was  a  very  long  turkey-tail  feather.    And 


96       THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

tliis  man  nsked  to  become  taller  than  any  Indian  in 
all  the  land.^ 

And  the  second  wished  tliat  he  might  ever  remain 
where  he  was  to  behold  the  land  and  the  beauty  of  it, 
and  to  do  naught  else. 

And  the  third  wished  to  live  to  an  exceeding  old 
age,  and  ever  to  be  in  good  health. 

Now  the  three,  when  they  came  to  the  island,  had 
found  there  three  wigwams,  and  in  two  of  these  were 
dwellers,  not  spoken  of  in  other  traditions.  In  one 
lived  Cool-inij-ot^  a  very  strange  man.  For  he  has  no 
bones,  and  cannot  move  himself,  but  every  spring  and 
autumn  he  is  rolled  over  with  JidiuhpikeH  by  the 
order  of  Glooskap,  and  this  is  what  his  name  means 
in  the  Micmac  tongue.  And  in  the  autunni  he  is 
turned  towards  the  west,  but  in  the  spring  towards 
the  cast,  and  this  is  a  figure  of  speech  denoting  the 
revolving  seasons  of  the  year.  AVith  his  breath  he 
can  sweep  down  whole  armies,  and  witli  his  looks  alone 
he  can  work  great  wonders,  and  all  this  means  the 
weather,  —  frost,  snow,  ice,  and  sunshine.^ 

^  This  story  has  beoii  told  to  mo  in  three  different  forms.  I 
have  liere  given  it  with  gi-eat  care  in  what  I  conceive  to  bo  the 
original.     Tn  one  version  it  is  the  pine,  in  another  the  cfdar-tree. 

2  jNIr.  Rand  (manuscript,  p.  471)  says  that  all  of  this  explana- 
tion was  given  verbatim  hy  a  IVIicmac  named  Sti'phen  Flood,  who 
was  a  "  very  intelligent  and  reliable  Indian."  Cool-puj-ot  is  al- 
most identical  with  Shawandasee,  the  fjuardian  of  the  South. 
"  He  is  represented  as  an  ai'lluent,  jdethoric  old  man,  who  has 
grown  unwieldy  from  repletit)n,  and  seldom  moves.  lie  keeps 
his  eyes  steadfastly  lixed  on  the  north.     When  he  sighs  iu  au- 


GLOOSk'AP   THE  DIVINITY.  97 

And  in  the  other  wiq-wam  dwelt  Cuhhu  (^I.)i  which 
means  Eaithciuake.  And  this  niiijjlity  man  can  jiass 
ah)ng  under  the  ground,  and  make  all  things  shake 
and  tremble  by  his  power. 

Now  when  Giooskap  had  heard  what  tlicse  visitors 
wished  for,  he  called  Karth([uake,  and  bid  him  take 
them  all  three  and  put  them  with  their  feet  in  the 
ground.  And  he  did  so,  when  they  at  once  became 
three  trees  :  as  one  tratlition  declares,  pines ;  and  an- 
other, cedars. 

So  that  he  that  would  be  tall  became  exceeding  tall, 
for  his  head  rose  above  the  forest;  and  even  the  tur- 
key-feather at  the  top  thereof  is  not  forgotten,  since 
to  this  day  it  is  seen  waving  in  the  wind.  And  ho 
who  will  listen  in  a  pine-wood  may  hear  the  tree  mur- 
muring all  day  long  in  the  Indian  tongue  of  the  olden 

time,  — 

"  Eo  nil  Etnclii  nek  ni'kilaskitopp 
Ee  nil  P3tiiche  wiski  nek  n'kil  oosketljin."  ^ 

Oh,  I  am  such  a  great  man  ! 
Oh,  I  am  sueh  a  <;i'i'a(  Indian  ! 

And  the  second,  who  would  remain  in  the  land,  re- 
mains there ;  for  w  hile  his  roots  are  in  the  ground  ho 
cannot  depart  from  it. 

tunm,  wo  have  those  halmy  southern  airs,  which  connnunicato 
warmth  and  deli_i,dit  over  the  nortliern  liemis[>hcre,  and  make 
the  Indian  summer."  The  "  at'lluenee  "  and  "  grown  unwieldy 
from  repletion,"  in  this  account,  are  probably  due  to  Sehooleraft's 
florid  style.  (Hiairntha  Legoufs.)  Shawandasee  is  identical 
with  Sviusnd  of  the  Edda.  (Vat'thrudnismal,  -7.) 
1  rassaiuaciuoddy. 
7 


98  THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

And  the  third,  who  would  live  long  in  health,  un- 
less men  have  cut  him  down,  is  standing  as  of  yorc.^ 

Of  Glooskap  and  the  Three  Other  Seekers. 
(Micmac.) 

Of  old  time.  Now  when  it  was  noised  abroad  that 
whoever  besought  Glooskap  could  obtain  the  desire  of 
his  heart,  there  were  three  men  who  said  among  them- 
selves, "  Let  us  seek  the  Master."  So  they  left  their 
home  in  the  early  spring  when  the  bluebird  first  sang, 
and  walked  till  the  fall  frosts,  and  then  into  winter, 
and  ever  on  till  the  next  midsunnner.  And  having 
come  to  a  small  ])ath  in  a  great  forest,  they  followed 
it,  till  they  came  out  by  a  very  beautiful  river ;  so  fair 
a  sight  they  had  never  seen,  and  so  went  onward  till 
it  grew  to  be  a  great  lake.  And  so  they  kept  to  the 
path  which,  when  untrodden,  was  marked  by  blazed 
trees,  the  bark  having  been  removed,  in  Indian  fash- 

1  In  another  version  of  this  t:ik>,  Glooskap  triuisforined  him 
into  an  okl  gnarled  and  twisted  cedar,  with  linil)s  growing  ont 
rough  and  ugly  all  the  way  from  the  Ijottom.  "  There,"  he  said 
to  the  cedar-tree,  "  I  cainiot  say  how  long  you  will  live  ;  only 
the  Great  Spirit  above  can  tell  that ;  but  you  will  not  be  dis- 
turbed for  a  good  while,  as  no  one  can  have  any  object  in  cut- 
ting you  down.  You  are  yourself  unfit  for  any  earthly  purpose, 
anil  the  laud  around  you  is  useless  for  cultivation.  I  think  you 
will  stand  there  for  a  long  while."     (Hand  manuscript.) 

It  should  be  added  that  in  one  version  we  are  told  that  the 
seeds  from  tiiese  cedars  or  pines  were  blown  by  the  wind,  and  so 
spread  forth  all  over  the  earth.  The  jdanting  of  the  cedar  by 
Eartlujuake  possibly  indicates  the  storms  by  which  seeds  are 
blown  afar. 


GLOOSKAP    TURNING    A    MAN    INTO    A    CEDAR-TREE 


GLOOSKAP   THE  DIVINITY.  99 

ion,  on  tlio  side  of  the  trunk  which  is  opposite  the 
pkioe  where  the  wi«^wiun  or  village  lies  towards  which 
it  turns.  So  the  mark  can  be  seen  as  the  traveler 
goes  towards  the  goal,  but  not  while  leaving  it. 

Then  after  a  thne  they  came  to  a  long  point  of  land 
running  out  into  the  lake,  and,  having  ascended  a  high 
hill,  they  saw  in  the  distance  a  smoke,  which  guided 
them  to  a  large,  well-built  wigwam.  And,  entering, 
they  found  seated  on  the  right  side  a  liundsome, 
healthy  man  of  middle  age,  and  by  the  other  a  woman 
so  decrepit  that  she  seemed  to  be  a  hundred  years 
old.  Oi)posite  the  door,  and  on  tho  left  side,  was  a 
mat,  which  seemed  to  show  that  a  third  person  had 
there  a  seat. 

And  the  man  made  them  welcome,  and  spoke  as  if 
he  were  ludedii'aslt  kesef/vou  (M.) — well  pleased  to 
see  them,  but  did  not  ask  them  whence  they  came  or 
whither  they  were  going,  as  is  wont  among  Indians 
when  strangers  come  to  their  homes  or  are  met  in 
travel.  Erelong  they  heard  the  sound  of  a  paddle, 
and  then  the  noise  of  a  canoe  being  drawn  ashore. 
And  there  came  in  a  youth  of  fine  form  and  features 
and  well  clad,  bearing  weapons  as  if  from  hunting 
who  addressed  the  old  woman  as  /ir/oo,  or  mother, 
and  told  her  that  ha  had  brought  game.  And  with 
sore  ado  —  for  she  was  feeble  —  the  old  dame  tottered 
out  and  brought  in  four  beavers  ;  but  she  was  so  nuich 
troubled  to  cut  them  up  that  tho  elder,  saying  to  the 
younger  man  Uoh-kcen!  (M.),  "  My  brother,"  bade 
him  do  the  work.     And  they  supped  on  beaver. 


100  THE  ALaOXQUlN  LEGEXDS. 

So  tliey  roniainod  for  a  week,  resting  thomsclves, 
for  they  were  sadly  worn  with  their  wearisome  journey, 
and  also  utterly  ragged.  And  then  a  wondrous  thing 
cainc  to  pass,  whieh  first  taught  tlioni  that  they  were 
iu  an  enchanted  land.  For  one  morning  the  elder 
man  bade  the  younger  wash  their  mother's  face.  And 
as  ho  did  this  all  her  wrinkles  vanished,  and  she  he- 
came  young  and  very  beautiful ;  in  all  their  lives  the 
travelers  had  never  seen  so  lovely  a  woman.  Her 
hair,  whieh  had  been  white  and  scanty,  now  hung  to 
her  feet,  dark  and  glossy  as  a  blaclcbird's  breast. 
Then,  having  been  clad  in  fine  array,  she  showed  a 
tall,  lithe,  and  graceful  form  at  its  best. 

And  the  travelers  said  to  themselves,  "  Truly  this 
man  is  a  great  magician  !  "  They  all  walked  forth  to 
see  the  place.  Never  was  sunshine  so  pleasantly  tem- 
pered by  a  soft  breeze ;  for  all  in  that  land  was  fair, 
and  it  grew  fairer  day  by  day  to  all  who  dwelt  there. 
Tall  trees  with  rich  foliage  and  fragrant  flowers,  but 
witliout  lower  limbs  or  underbrush,  grew  as  in  a  grove, 
wide  as  a  forest,  yet  so  far  apart  that  the  eye  could 
pierce  the  distance  in  every  direction. 

Now  when  they  felt  for  the  first  time  that  they  were 
in  a  new  life  and  a  magic  land,  he  that  was  host  asked 
them  whence  they  came  and  what  they  sought.  So 
they  said  that  they  sought  Glooskap.  And  the  host 
re})lied,  "  Lo,  I  am  he  !  "  And  they  were  awed  by  his 
presence,  for  a  great  glory  and  majesty  now  sat  upon 
him.  As  the  woman  had  changed,  so  had  he,  for  all 
in  that  place  was  wonderful. 


GLoosKAP  nil':  Divixrrv.  101 

Then  the  first,  tcllinj;"  wluit  lu;  wantotl,  said,  '"  I  am 
a  wicked  iiiaii,  and  I  liavo  a  l)ad  triniuM".  I  am  prone 
to  wrath  and  reviling,  yet  1  would  fain  be  pi<His,  meek, 
and  holy." 

And  the  next  said,  "  I  am  very  jjoor,  and  wy  life  is 
hard.  I  toil,  but  can  barely  make  my  livini;-.  1 
would  fain  be  ricii." 

Now  the  third  rei)lied,  "  I  am  of  low  estate,  being 
desi)iscd  and  hated  by  all  my  i)eo])le,  and  1  wish  to  be 
loved  and  respected."  And  to  all  these  the  Master 
made  answer,  ''  So  shall  it  be  !  " 

And  taking  his  medieine-bag  (^Upsahumnod(\  M.) 
he  gave  unto  each  a  small  box,  and  bade  them  keep  it 
closed  until  they  should  be  onee  more  at  home.^  And 
on  returning  to  the  wigwam  he  also  gave  to  each  of 
them  new  garments ;  in  all  their  lives  they  had  never 
seen  or  heard  of  sueh  rich  apparel  or  such  ornaments 
as  they  now  had.  Then  wlien  it  was  time  to  dei)art, 
as  they  knew  not  the  way  to  their  home,  ho  arose  and 
went  with  them.  Now  they  had  been  more  than  a 
year  in  coming.  But  he,  having  put  on  his  belt,  went 
forth,  and  they  followed,  till  in  the  forenoon  he  led 
them  to  the  top  of  a  high  moimtain,  from  which  in 
the  distance  they  beheld  yet  another,  the  blue  outline 
of  which  could  just  be  seen  above  the  horizon.  And 
having  been  told  that  their  way  was   unto  it,  they 

^  In  this  version  (Rand  manuscript)  there  is  a  fourth  Indian 
introduced,  —  lie  who  wouhl  fain  he  tall  and  long-lived,  and  is 
changed  to  a  tree.  As  it  is  precisely  the  same  tale  as  that  of  tho 
three  who  hecanie  cypresses  or  pines,  I  have  not  repeated  it. 


102  THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

thought  it  would  be  a  week's  journey  to  reach  it.  But 
they  went  on,  and  in  the  middle  of  the  afternoon  of 
the  same  day  they  were  there,  on  the  summit  of  the 
second  mountain.  And  looking  from  this  afar,  all 
was  familiar  to  them  —  hill  and  river,  and  wood  and 
lakes  ;  all  was  in  their  memory.  "  And  there,"  said 
the  Master,  pointing  unto  it,  —  "  there  is  your  own 
village  !  "  So  he  left  tliem  alone,  and  they  went  on 
their  way,  and  before  the  suu  had  set  were  safe  at 
home. 

Yet  when  they  came  no  one  knew  them,  because  of 
the  great  change  in  their  appearance  and  their  fine 
attire,  the  like  of  which  had  never  been  seen  by  man 
in  those  days.  But  having  made  themselves  known  to 
their  friends,  all  that  were  there  of  old  and  yomig 
gathered  together  to  gaze  upon  and  hear  what  they 
had  to  say.     And  they  were  amazed. 

Then  each  of  them,  having  opened  his  box,  found 
therein  an  unguent,  rich  and  fragrant,  and  with  this 
they  rubbed  their  bodies  completely.  And  they  were 
ever  after  so  fragrant  from  the  divine  anointing  that 
all  sought  to  be  near  them.  Happy  were  they  who 
could  but  sniff  at  the  blessect  smell  which  came  from 
them. 

Now  he  who  had  been  despised  for  his  deformity 
and  weakness  and  meanness  became  bejiutiful  and 
strong  and  stately  as  a  pine-tree.  There  was  no  man 
in  all  the  land  so  graceful  or  of  such  good  behavior. 

And  he  who  had  desired  al)undance  had  it,  in  all 
fidlness,  his  wish.     For  the  moose  and  caribou  came 


GLOOSKAP  THE  DIVINITY.  103 

to  him  in  the  forest,  the  fish  leaped  into  his  nets,  all 
men  gave  nnto  him,  and  he  gave  unto  all  freely,  to 
the  end. 

And  he  that  had  b(!en  wieked  and  of  evil  mind, 
hasty  and  cruel,  became  meek  and  patient,  good  and 
gentle,  and  lie  made  others  like  himself.  And  he 
had  his  reward,  for  there  was  a  blessing  upon  him  as 
upon  all  those  who  had  wished  wisely  even  unto  the 
end  of  their  days.^ 

1  This  bcautii'ul  story,  in  its  original  simplicity,  reminds  one  of 
the  teuderest  biblical  narratives.  There  is  in  it  nothing  reflected 
or  second-hand  ;  it  is  a  very  ancient  or  trnly  aboriginal  tale.  I 
can  but  sincerely  regret  my  utter  inability  to  do  justice  to  it. 
The  pen  of  a  great  master  would  bo  required  to  describe  the 
fairyland  freshness  and  light  of  Glooskai)'s  liomo  as  it  is  felt  ip 
the  original  by  men  far  more  familiar  with  the  forest  in  all  its 
loveliness  at  all  seasons  than  any  white  writer  can  be.  Thq 
naivcU:  or  simplicity  of  the  ])ilgrims  is  as  striking  as  that  of  the 
narrator  or  poet,  to  whom  line  clo.hcs  —  a  Homeric  trait  —  are 
as  wonderful  as  all  the  deeds  of  magic  which  he  describes. 

In  this  and  otlier  tales  a  man  is  represented  as  being  punished 
by  being  turned  into  a  tree,  so  that  he  can  never  leave  a  certain 
spot.  This  is  a  kind  of  imprisonment.  In  the  Edda  the  Ash 
Yggdrasil  is  the  prison  of  Iduna. 

"  She  ill  brooked 

h«?r  descent 

under  the  hoar  tree's 

trunk  conlined." 

(Ilrqfnnfjnldr  Odlna,  7.) 

It  is  to  keep  a  man  or  a  woman  in  a  certain  place,  as  prisoner, 
that  the  characters  described  in  the  Indian  and  Norse  myths  are 
put  into  trees. 

This  was  related  to  Mr.  Hand  by  Benjamin  Brooks,  a  Micmac. 


104  THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

Of  Glooslcap  and  the  Sinful  Serpent. 
(  riissania(|iiod  dy . ) 

Of  old  time  it  befell  that  Glooskap  had  an  enemy, 
an  evil  man,  a  sinful  beast,  a  great  sorcerer.  And 
this  man,  after  trying  many  things,  made  himself  a 
great  serpent,  hoping  so  to  slay  the  Master, 

Of  eld  time  Glooskap  met  a  boy  whose  name  was 
^ Nmmohswess^  the  Sable.^  And  the  boy  had  a  flute  : 
whoever  played  on  it  could  entice  unto  him  all  the 
animals.  And  once,  when  the  Master  was  afar,  the 
boy  broke  the  flute,  and  in  his  great  sorrow  he  would 
not  return  home,  but  wandered  away  into  the  wil- 
derness. Now  Glooskap  knew  in  his  heart  that  the 
flute  was  broken:  he  who  is  a  magician  knows  at 
once  of  a  great  evil.  And  coming  home,  he  asked 
of  the  grandmother  where  the  boy  was,  and  she  could 
only  weep.  Then  the  Master  said,  "  Though  I  roam 
forever,  yet  will  1  find  the  boy."  So  he  went  forth, 
and  he  tracked  him  in  the  snow  for  three  days ; 
and  on  the  third  night  he  heard  some  one  singing  in 
a  hollow;  and  it  was  a  magic  song,  that  whicli  the 
Qn'teoiilin  sings  when  he  is  in  dire  need  and  death  is 
near.  And  making  a  circle  round  about  the  place, 
Glooskap  looked  down  and  saw  a  wigwam,  and  lieard 
the  voice  more  distinctly  as  he  drew  nearer;  and  it 
was  the  voice  of  the  boy,  and  he  was  singing  a  song 

^  Evidently  no  other  than  Marten,  or  the  Abibtauooch  of  the 
Micmac  inytht)h)gy. 


GLOOSKAP   THE  DIVINITY.  105 

against  all  of  the  snake  kind.  And  he  was  wandering 
about  the  wigwam,  seeking  a  straight  stick. 

Then  Glooskap  understood  all  the  thing,  and  how 
the  boy  had  been  enticed  into  the  wilderness  by  the 
evil  arts  of  At-o-sis,  the  Snake,  and  that  the  Great 
Serpent  was  in  the  wigwam,  and  had  sent  him  out  to 
seek  a  straight  stick.  Then  Glooskap,  singing  again 
softly,  bade  him  get  a  very  crooked  one,  and  told 
what  more  to  do.  So  the  boy  got  an  exceedingly 
crooked  one  ;  and  when  he  entered,  the  Snake,  seeing 
it,  said,  "  AVhy  hast  thou  got  -^uich  a  bad  stick  ?  " 
And  the  boy,  answering,  said,  ''  Truly,  it  is  very 
crooked,  but  that  which  is  crookedest  may  be  made 
straightest,  and  I  know  a  charm  whereby  this  can  be 
done ;  for  I  will  but  heat  this  stick  in  the  fire,  and 
then  I  will  make  it  quite  straight,  as  you  shall  see." 
Now  At-o-sis  was  very  anxious  to  behold  this  wonder- 
ful thing,  and  he  looked  closely  ;  but  the  boy,  as  soon 
as  the  end  of  the  stick  was  red-hot,  thrust  it  into  his 
eyes  and  blinded  him,  and  ran  forth.  Yet  the  Snake 
followed  him  ;  but  wlien  he  was  without  the  wigwam 
he  met  the  ]Slaster,  who  slew  him  out  of  hand.' 

Of  old  times.     This  is  an  end  of  the  story. 

^  This  curious  logond  is  suggestive  of  Ulysses  and  the  Cy^'lops. 
The  enemies  of  Glooskap  are  all  cannibals  ;  the  boy  is  sent  out 
for  a  straight  stick  to  serve  as  a  spit  to  roast  him  on.  It  is  not  im- 
possible that  the  Snake,  in  some  perfect  version  of  the  tale,  has 
but  a  single  eye,  since  many  of  the  evil  creatures  of  red  Indian 
mythology  are  half  stone  lengthwise.  Rut  the  whole  story  is 
full  of  strange  hints.  It  was  told  me  by  Tomah  Josephs,  at  Cam- 
pobello,  N.  B. 


lOG  THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

The  Tide  of  GloosJcap  as  told  hi/  (mother  Indian.     Show- 
ing how  the  Toad  and  Vorciqnne  lost  their  Noses. 

(Miciiiiic.) 

In  the  old  time.  Far  before  men  knew  themselves, 
in  the  light  before  the  sun,  Glooskap  and  his  brother 
were  as  yet  unborn ;  they  waited  for  the  day  to  ap- 
pear. Then  they  talked  together,  and  the  youigest 
said,  "  Why  should  I  wait  ?  I  will  go  into  tlie  world 
and  begin  my  life  at  once."  Then  the  elder  said, 
"  Not  so,  for  this  were  a  great  evil."  But  the  younger 
gave  no  heed  to  any  wisdom  :  in  his  wickedness  he 
broke  through  his  mother's  side,  he  rent  the  wall ;  his 
beginning  of  life  was  his  mother's  death. 

Now,  in  after  years,  the  younger  brother  would 
learn  in  what  lay  the  secret  of  the  elder's  death.  And 
Glooslcap,  being  crafty,  told  the  truth  and  yet  lied; 
for  his  name  was  the  Liar,  yet  did  he  never  lie  for 
evil  or  auiiht  to  harm.  So  he  told  his  brother  that 
the  bh)W  of  a  ball,  or  handful  of  the  down  of  feath- 
ers, would  take  away  his  life ;  and  this  was  true,  for 
it  would  stun  him,  but  it  would  not  prevent  his  re- 
turning to  life.  Then  Glooska])  asked  the  younger  for 
his  own  secret.  And  he,  being  determined  to  give  the 
elder  no  time,  answered  truly  and  fearlessly,  "  I  can 
only  be  slain  by  the  stroke  of  a  cat-tail  or  bulrush." 

And  then  the  yoiuiger,  having  gathered  the  down 
of  bird's  feathers,  struck  the  elder,  so  that  he  fell 
dead,  and  therein  he  told  the  truth.  But  he  soon  re- 
covered, and  in  that  was  his  deceit.     Howbeit  it  was 


GLOOSKAP   THE  DIVINITY.  107 

well  for  the  world  and  well  for  him  that  he  then 
gathered  bulruslics  and  smote  his  younger  brother,  so 
that  he  died.  I  hit  the  plant  never  grew  that  could 
harm  the  Master,  wherefore  he  is  alive  to  this  day. 

Who  was  his  mother  ?  The  female  Turtle  was  liis 
mother. 

The  Master  was  the  Lord  of  Men  and  Beasts. 
Beasts  and  Men,  one  as  the  other,  he  ruled  them  all. 
Great  was  his  army,  his  tribe  was  All.  In  it  the 
Great  Golden  Eagle  was  a  chief ;  he  married  a  female 
Caribou.  The  Turtle  was  Glooskap's  imcle ;  he  mar- 
ried a  daughter  of  the  Golden  Eagle  and  Caribou.  Of 
all  these  things  there  are  many  and  long  traditions. 
Our  people  tell  them  in  the  winter  by  the  fire  ;  the 
old  people  know  them  ;  the  young  forget  them  and 
the  wisdom  which  is  in  them. 

When  the  Turtle  married,  the  Master  bade  him 
make  a  feast,  and  wished  that  the  banquet  should  be 
a  mighty  one.  T(3  do  this  he  gave  him  great  })ower. 
He  bade  him  go  down  to  a  point  of  rocks  by  the  sea, 
where  many  whales  were  always  to  be  found.  lie 
bade  him  bring  one  ;  he  gave  him  power  to  do  so,  but 
he  set  a  mark,  or  an  appointed  space,  and  bade  him  not 
go  an  inch  beyond  it.  So  the  Turtle  went  down  to 
the  sea ;  he  caught  a  great  wliale,  he  bore  it  to  camp  ; 
it  seemed  to  him  easy  to  do  this.  But  like  all  men 
there  was  in  him  vain  curiosity ;  the  falscihood  of  dis- 
obedience was  in  him,  and  to  try  the  Master  he  wc^nt 
beyond  the  mark  ;  and  as  he  did  this  he  lost  his  magic 
strength  ;  he  became  as  a   man ;  even  as  a  common 


108  THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

mortal  his  nerves  weakened,  and  he  fell,  crushed  flat 
beneath  the  weight  of  the  great  fish. 

Then  men  ran  to  Glooskaj),  saying  that  Turtle  was 
dead.  But  the  Master  answered,  "  Cut  up  the  Whale  ; 
he  who  is  now  dead  will  revive."  So  they  cut  it  up ; 
(and  when  the  feast  was  ready)  Turtle  came  in  yawn- 
ing, and  stretching  out  his  leg  he  cried,  "  How  tired 
I  am !  Truly,  I  nuist  have  overslept  myself."  Now 
from  this  time  all  men  greatly  feared  Glooskap,  for 
they  saw  that  he  was  a  si)irit. 

It  came  to  pass  that  the  Turtle  waxed  mighty  in 
his  own  conceit,  and  thought  that  he  could  take  Gloos- 
kap's  place  and  reign  in  his  stead.  So  ho  held  a 
council  of  all  the  aninuils  to  find  out  how  he  could  ho 
slain.  The  Lord  of  Men  and  Beasts  laughed  at  this. 
Little  did  he  care  for  them  ! 

And  knowing  all  that  was  in  their  hearts,  he  put  on 
the  shape  of  an  old  squaw  and  went  into  the  council- 
house.  And  he  sat  down  by  two  witches  :  one  was  the 
Porcupine,  the  other  the  Toad ;  as  women  they  sat 
there.  Of  them  the  Master  asked  humbly  how  they 
expected  to  kill  him.  And  the  Toad  answered  sav- 
agely, "  What  is  that  to  thee,  and  w^hat  hast  thou  to 
do  with  this  thing  ?  "  "  Truly,"  he  replied,  "  I  meant 
no  harm,"  and  saying  this  he  softly  touched  the  tips 
of  their  noses,  and  rising  went  his  way.  But  the  two 
witclies,  looking  one  at  the  other,  saw  presently  that 
their  noses  were  both  gone,  and  they  screamed  aloud 
in  terror,  but  their  faces  were  none  the  less  flat.  And 
so  it  came  that  the  Toad  and  the  Porcupine  both  lost 
their  noses  and  have  none  to  this  day. 


GLOOSKAP   THE  DIVINITY.  109 

Glooskap  had  two  dogs.  One  was  the  Loon  (Kwe- 
moo),  the  other  the  Wolf  (Malsuin).  Of  old  all  ani- 
mals were  as  men  ;  the  Master  gave  them  the  shapes 
whieh  they  now  bear.  Ijiit  the  Wolf  and  the  Loon 
loved  Glooska})  so  greatly  that  since  he  left  them 
they  howl  and  wail.  He  who  hears  their  cries  over 
the  still  sound  and  lonely  lake,  by  the  streams  where 
no  dwellers  are,  or  afar  at  night  in  the  forests  and 
hollows,  hears  them  sorrowing  for  the  Master. 

I  am  indebted  for  this  legend  to  Mr.  Edward  Jack, 
of  Fredericton,  N.  B.  "  I  give  it  to  you,"  he  writes, 
"  just  as  it  came  from  an  Indian's  lips,  as  he  sat  be- 
fore the  fire  in  my  room  this  evening,  smoking  his  to- 
bacco mixed  with  willow  bark,  lie  has  an  endless 
store  of  Indian  lore."  It  may  be  observed  that  this 
story  gives  a  far  more  ingenious  reason  for  Glooskap's 
telling  his  brother  what  would  be  his  bane  than  ajv 
pears  in  the  other  version.  For  he  tells  him  what 
would  indeed  deprive  Jiim  of  life,  but  not  forever. 

No  one  can  compare  the  story  of  (ilooskap  with  that 
of  Manobt)zho- Hiawatha  and  the  like,  as  given  by 
Schoolcraft  or  Cusick,  and  not  decide  that  the  latter 
seems  to  be  a  second-hand  version  of  the  former.  In 
one  we  have  the  root  of  the  bulrush,  —  not  the  light, 
feathery  rush  itself.  In  this  story,  as  in  that  of  lialder 
and  Loki,  it  is  the  very  apparent  harmlessness  of  the 
banc  which  points  the  incident.  Manobozho's  father 
scnja  that  a  black  rock  will  kill  him  ;  but  it  does  not, 
although  he  flies  before  it.     Glooskap  declares  that  a 


110  THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

handful  of  clown  will  cause  his  death.  The  douhle 
entendre  of  the  swoon  is  entirely  wanting  in  the  West- 
ern tale,  as  is  the  apparent  harndessness  of  the  me- 
dium of  death.  In  the  Edda  the  mistletoe,  the  softest, 
and  apparently  the  least  injurious,  of  plants,  kills 
Balder;  in  the  Wabanaki  tale  it  is  a  ball  of  down 
or  a  rush.  The  Chippewas  change  it,  like  savages,  to 
a  substantial  root  and  a  black  rock,  thereby  manifest- 
ing an  insensibility  to  the  point  of  the  original,  which 
is  that  the  most  trifling  thing  may  be  the  cause  of  the 
most  terrible  events. 

How  Glooshap  changed  Certain  Saucy  Indians  into  Rattle- 
snakes. 

(  Passamaquotltly . ) 

You  know  At-o-sis,  the  Snake  ?  Well,  the  w^orst  of 
all  is  liattlcsnake.  Long  time  ago  the  Rattlesnakes 
were  saucy  Indians.  They  were  very  saucy.  They 
had  too  much  face.  They  could  not  be  put  down  by 
much,  and  they  got  up  for  very  little. 

When  the  great  Flood  was  coming  Glooskap  told 
them  about  it.  They  said  they  did  not  care.  lie  told 
them  the  water  woidd  come  over  their  heads.  They 
said  that  would  be  very  wet.  He  told  them  to  be 
good  and  quiet,  and  pray.  Then  those  Indians  hur- 
rahed. He  said,  "  A  great  Flood  is  coming."  Then 
they  gave  three  cheers  for  the  great  Flood.  He  said, 
"  The  Flood  will  come  and  drown  you  all."  Then 
these  Indians  hurrahed  again,  and  got  their  rattles, 
made  of  turtle-shells,  in  the  old  fashion,  fastened  to- 


GLOOSKAP   THE  DIVINITY.  Ill 

getlicr,  filled  with  pebbles,  and  rattled  them  and  had 
a  grand  dance.  Afterwards,  when  the  white  men 
brought  cows  and  oxen  into  the  country,  they  made 
rattles  of  horns. 

Yes,  they  had  a  great  dance.  The  rain  began  to 
fall,  but  they  danced.  The  thunder  roared,  and  they 
shook  their  rattles  and  yelled  at  it.  Then  Gh)oskap 
was  angry.  lie  did  not  drown  them  in  the  Flood, 
however,  but  lie  changed  them  into  rattlesnakes. 
Nowadays,  when  they  see  a  man  coming,  they  lift  up 
their  heads  and  move  them  about.  That 's  the  way 
snakes  dance.  And  they  shake  the  rattles  in  their 
tails  just  as  Indians  shake  their  rattles  when  they 
dance.     How  do  you  like  such  music  ? 

A  Passamaquoddy  tale  related  by  an  old  woman 
to  Mrs.  W.  Wallace  Brown.  These  Indians  still  keep 
up  a  very  curious  snake-dance. 

Hoio  Glooshap  hound  Wnchoivsen,  the  Great  Wind-Bird, 
and  made  all  the  Waters  in  all  the  World  Stagnant. 

(Passamaquoddy.) 

The  Indians  believe  in  a  great  bird  called  by  them 
Wochoicsen  or  Wiiclioivsen.,  meaning  Wind-Blow  or 
the  Wind-Blower,  who  lives  far  to  the  North,  and 
sits  upon  a  gTeat  rock  at  the  end  of  the  sky.  And  it 
is  because  whenever  he  moves  his  wings  the  wind 
blows  they  of  old  times  called  him  that. 

When  Glooskap  was  among  men  he  often  went  out 
in  his  canoe  with  bow  and  arrows  to  kill  sea-fowl. 


112  THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

At  one  time  it  was  every  day  very  windy  ;  it  grew 
worse  ;  at  last  it  blew  a  tempest,  and  he  could  not 
go  out  at  all.  Then  he  saitl,  ""  \V  uehowsen,  the  Great 
IMrd,  has  done  this  !  " 

lie  went  to  find  him  ;  it  was  long  ere  he  rcaehed 
his  abode.  He  found  sitting  on  a  high  roek  a  large 
white  Bird. 

"  Grandfather,"  said  Glooskap,  "  you  take  no  com- 
passion on  your  Jvooscac/x^  your  grandchildren.  You 
have  caused  this  wind  and  storm ;  it  is  too  nuich. 
Be  easier  with  your  wings  I  " 

The  Giant  Bird  replied,  "I  have  been  here  since 
ancient  times ;  in  the  earliest  days,  ere  aught  tilse 
spoke,  I  first  moved  my  wings  ;  mine  was  the  first 
voice,  —  and  I  will  ever  move  my  wings  as  I  will." 

Then  Glooskap  rose  in  his  might ;  he  rose  to  the 
clouds ;  he  took  the  Great  Bird-giant  Wuchowsen  as 
though  he  were  a  duck,  and  tied  both  his  wings,  and 
threw  liim  down  into  a  chasm  between  deep  rocks, 
and  left  him  lying  there. 

The  Indians  could  now  go  out  in  their  canoes  all 
day  long,  for  there  was  a  dead  calm  for  many  weeks 
and  months.  And  with  that  all  the  waters  became 
stagnant.  They  were  so  thick  that  Glooskap  could 
not  paddle  his  canoe.  Then  he  thought  of  the  Great 
Bird,  and  went  to  see  him. 

As  he  had  left  him  ho  found  him,  for  Wuchowsen 
is  innnortal.  So,  raising  him,  he  put  him  on  his  rock 
again,  and  untied  one  of  his  wings.  Since  then  the 
winds  have  never  been  so  terrible  as  in  the  old  time. 


GLOOSKAP   THE  DIVINITY,  113 

Tho  rojider  will  Hnd  the  inuiii  iiit'uh'nt  of  tliiH  story 
repeated  in  "  Tumilkoontiioo,  the  iirokeii  ^Villg," 
from  tho  Micinac,  in  whieh  there  is  no  mention  of 
Glooskiip.  This  of  WucIiomHcn  is  from  the  l*Jissa- 
ma(ino(My  manuscript  collection  by  Louis  Mitchell. 
It  is  un(piestional)ly  the  original.  Glooskaj),  as  tho 
griiatest  ma|;ician,  most  ai)pro[)riat('ly  subdues  tho 
giant  eagle  of  the  North,  the  teriible  god  of  tho 
storm. 

No  one  who  knows  the  Edda  will  deny  that  Wu- 
chowsen,  or  the  Wind-blower,  as  he  appears  in  tho 
Passanuupioddy  tale,  is  far  more  like  tlu;  same  bii-d 
of  the  Norsemen  than  the  grotes(pio  Thunder  liird 
of  the  Western  tribes,  lie  is  <listinctly  spoken  of  by 
the  Indians  of  Maine  as  a  giant  and  a  bird  in  one, 
sitting  on  a  high  clilf  at  the  end  of  the  sky,  tho  wind 
—  not  thunder  —  coming  from  his  })inions  :  — 

"  Tell  1110  ninthly, 
Sinco  thou  urt  caUod  wiso, 
Whence  tho  wind  comes, 
That  over  ocean  passes, 
Itself  invisible  to  man. 

**  Ilraosvelg  ho  is  called 
Who  at  the  end  of  heaven  sits, 
A  Jiitun  (f^iaiit)  in  eagle's  plumage  : 
From  his  wings  comes. 
It  is  said,  tho  wind 
That  over  all  men  ])assos." 
(The  Lay  of  Vafthrudnir.     The  lulda,  trans,  "by  B.  Thorpe.) 

8 


114  THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

How  Glooshq)  conquered  the  Great  Bull- frog,  ntid  in  what 
Manner  all  the  rollywoys,  Crabs,  Leeches,  and  other 
Water  Creatures  were  created. 

(  PjiHsainaqiUMldy  and  Micniac.) 

N'harnayoo.,  of  old  times,  there  was  an  Indian 
village  far  away  among  the  monntalns,  little  known 
to  other  men.  And  the  dwellers  therein  were  very 
comfortable :  the  men  hunted  every  day,  the  women 
did  the  work  at  home,  anil  all  went  well  in  all  things 
save  in  this.  The  town  was  by  a  brook,  and  except 
in  it  there  was  not  a  drop  of  water  in  all  the  country 
round,  unless  in  a  few  rain-puddles.  No  one  there 
had  ever  foimd  even  a  spring. 

Now  these  Indians  were  very  fond  of  good  water. 
The  brook  was  of  a  superior  quality,  and  they  be- 
came dainty  over  it. 

But  after  a  time  they  began  to  observe  that  the 
brook  was  beginning  to  run  low,  and  that  not  in  the 
summer  time,  but  in  autumn,  even  after  the  rains. 
And  day  by  day  it  diminished,  until  its  bed  was  as 
dry  as  a  dead  bone  in  the  ashes  of  a  warm  fire. 

Now  it  was  said  that  far  away  up  in  the  land  where 
none  had  ever  been  there  was  on  this  very  stream 
another  Indian  village ;  but  what  manner  of  men 
dwelt  therein  no  one  knew.  And  thinking  that  these 
people  of  the  upper  country  might  be  in  some  way 
concerned  in  the  drought,  they  sent  one  of  their  num- 
ber to  go  and  see  into  the  matter. 

And  after  he  had  traveled  three  days  he  came  to 


GLOOSKAP   THE  DIVINITY.  115 

the  place ;  and  then;  he  foiiiul  that  a  dam  had  been 
raised  across  the  rivulet,  so  that  no  water  could  pass, 
for  it  was  all  kei)t  in  a  i)ond.  Then  asking  them  wliy 
they  had  made  tliis  mischief,  since  the  dam  was  of  no 
use  to  them,  they  bade  liim  go  and  see  their  chief,  by 
whose  order  this  had  been  built. 

And  when  he  came  to  him,  lo,  there  lay  lazily  in 
the  mud  a  creatiu'e  who  was  more  of  a  monster  than 
a  man,  though  he  had  a  human  form.  For  he  was 
immciise  to  measure,  like  a  giant,  fat,  bloated,  and 
brutal  to  behold.  His  great  yellow  eyes  stuck  from 
his  head  like  })ine-knots,  his  nioutli  went  almost  from 
ear  to  ear,  and  he  had  broad,  skinny  feet  with  long 
toes,  exceeding  marvelous. 

The  messenger  comi)lalued  to  this  monster,  who  at 
first  said  nothing,  and  then  croaked,  and  finally  re- 
plied in  a  loud  bellow,  — 

"  Do  as  you  clioose, 
Do  as  you  choose, 
Do  as  you  clioose. 

'<  What  do  I  care  ? 
What  do  I  care  ? 
What  do  I  care  ? 

"  If  you  want  water, 
If  you  want  water, 
If  you  want  water. 
Go  somewhere  else." 

Then  the  messenger  remonstrated,  and  described 
the  suffering  of  the  people,  who  were  dying  of  thirst. 


110  TJIE  ALGONQUIN  I.ECENDS. 

And  (his  sct'iih'd  to  jtlcasc  Liui  niouslcr,  who  j^^'riuued. 
At  hist  \\v  i;()t  up,  and,  making'  a  sin<;l('  spiinj^'  to  tlio 
(hini,  took  an  arrow  and  horcd  a  hoh'  in  it,  .so  tliat  a 
littlo  water  trifkh'il  onl,  and  then  h(>  liclh)wed, — 

"  Up  ;uul  Ik'^'oiio  1 

V\^  and  l)(';;()iu'  !  " 

So  tho  man  «h'partod,  lilth'  ('ond\)rt(ul.  llo  camo 
to  his  lionu',  and  lor  a  f(>w  (hiys  tluM'c;  was  Ji  littlo 
water  in  the  stream ;  but  this  soon  stoi)ped,  and  tiiere 
was  <;r(>at  snilerin*:^  ai;ain. 

Now  these  Indians,  who  were  the  lionestest  fellows 
in  all  the  world,  and  mncr  did  harm  to  any  one  save 
tlunr  enenues,  weri*  in  a  sorry  j)iekle.  For  it  is  ."t,  bail 
thin<;'  to  ha\'e  uothini;-  but  water  to  diink,  but  to  want 
that  is  to  bi'  miL^htiiy  dry.  And  the  great  (Uooskap, 
who  knew  all  that  was  ]>assinL;'  in  the  hearts  of  men 
and  beasts,  took  note  of  this,  and  when  he  willed  it  ho 
was  amon<;"  them  :  for  ho  over  eamo  as  the  wind  comos, 
anil  no  man  wist  how. 

And  just  bet\)ro  he  eamo  all  of  tlieao  good  fellows 
had  resolved  in  eoniieil  that  they  would  send  the  bold- 
est man  among  them  to  certain  death,  oven  to  the  vil- 
lage whieh  built  the  dam  that  ke])t  the  water  which 
tilled  tho  brook  that  ipienehed  their  thirst,  whoncvor 
it  was  not  omiity.  And  when  there  ho  was  either  to 
obtain  that  they  should  cut  tho  dam,  or  do  something 
desperate,  and  to  this  intent  he  should  go  armed,  and 
sing  his  death-song  as  ho  wont.  And  they  were  all 
agog. 


ainOSKAP   THE   DIVINITY.  117 

Then  ( JI(>(»sk:i|),  who  w:im  imicli  ]>!<!;ih(m1  vvlili  jiU 
this,  lor  h(!  h>v<'(l  ;i  hiiiv<'  mini,  ciiiiif  aiiMm<^  tliciii  look- 
in<;  tcrrihly  r«'i'<)('i(»ii,s  ;  in  :ill  the,  Iniid  there;  vvns  not, 
oiu!  who  HiMMiH^d  h:ill'  so  IiorrihU;.  I'or  he;  a|)|)(;Jiri!d 
ten  f«'('t  hi<^h,  with  a  hmidicd  red  and  hiacli  f(!atli(;i'H 
in  his  wcalpdocli,  his  face  painted  lil«!  Ircsh  l)h)od  with 
^rccn  i'inj;s  roinid  his  <'y«'s,  a  lar^'e  chini-shcll  han^ini;- 
from  each  car,  a  s|)r('ad  caj^h;,  very  awful  to  hehold, 
lhip|)in<j;"  its  wini;s  from  the  hack  of  his  neck,  so  tliat 
as  he  strodi!  into  th(!  village  all  hearts  <|uak«!<l.  IJcin;^- 
but  simple  Indians,  they  acconntcd  that  this  mnst  Ix;, 
if  not  Lox  tin;  (ircat  Wolverine,  at  h'ast  Mit<;he-hant, 
the  devil  himself  in  person,  tiirncid  W'ahanaki  ;  and 
they  admired  him  greatly,  and  the  sqnaws  said  they 
had  never  scH'n  anght  ho  lovely. 

Then  (Jlooskap,  having  heard  tlu;  whole  story,  hade 
them  hoof  good  ch(!(n',  (h'claring  that  he  wonld  so  )n 
set  all  to  rights.  And  he  withont  (((day  (l(q)artc(l  np 
the  hed  of  tlu;  hi-ook  ;  and  eoiiiing  to  the  town,  sat 
down  and  hade  a  l)oy  hring  him  water  to  drink.  To 
which  tlu!  hoy  roi)lied  that  no  water  (!ould  Ixi  had  in 
that  town  nnhiss  it  were  giv(!n  ont  hy  the  chief.  "  (Jo 
then  to  your  chief,"  said  the  Master,  "  and  hid  him 
hurry,  or,  verily,  I  will  know  the  reason  why."  And 
this  being'  told,  (Jlooska])  receivifd  no  rc'ply  for  more 
than  an  hour,  during  which  time  ho  sat  on  a  log  and 
smoked  his  i)ipo.  Then  the  hoy  returned  with  a  small 
cup,  and  this  not  half  full,  of  very  dirty  water. 

ISo  he  arose,  and  said  to  the;  boy,  "  I  will  go  and 
see  your  chief,  and  1  think  he  w  ill  soon  give  me  bet- 


118      THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

tor  water  tliau  this."  Aiul  having  conic  to  the  mon- 
ster, he  said,  "  Give  nie  to  drink,  and  that  of  the  best, 
at  once,  thou  Thing  of  Mud !  "  Ihit  the  chief  reviled 
him,  and  said,  "■  Ci et  thee  lience,  to  find  water  where 
tliou  canst."  Then  (Uooskap  thrust  a  si)ear  into  his 
belly,  and  lo !  there  gushed  forth  a  mighty  river ; 
even  all  the  water  which  shoukl  have  run  on  while  in 
the  rivulet,  for  he  had  made  it  into  himself.  And 
Gh)oskap,  rising  high  as  a  giant  pine,  caught  the  chief 
in  his  hand  and  crumpled  in  his  back  with  a  mighty 
gi}).  And  lo !  it  was  the  Bull-Frog.  So  he  hurled 
him  with  contempt  into  the  stream,  to  folhnv  the  cur- 
rent. 

And  ever  since  that  time  the  Bull-Frog's  back  has 
crum})led  wrinkles  in  the  lower  part,  showing  tho 
prints  of  (ilooskai)'s  awful  scpieeze. 

Then  he  returned  to  the  village ;  but  there  he  found 
no  people,  —  no,  not  one.  For  a  marvelous  thing  had 
come  to  pass  during  his  absence,  wliich  shall  be  heard 
in  every  Indian's  si)eech  througli  all  the  ages.  For  the 
men,  being,  as  I  said,  simple,  honest  folk,  did  as  boys 
do  when  they  are  hungry,  and  say  unto  one  another, 
"What  would  ijoii  like  to  have,  and  what  you?" 
"  Truly,  I  w(^uld  be  pleased  with  a  slice  of  hot  veni- 
son dipped  in  maple-sugar  and  bear's  oil."  "  Nay, 
give  me  for  my  share  succotash  and  honey."  Even 
so  these  villagers  had  said,  "  Suppose  yon  had  all  the 
nice  cold,  fresh,  sparkling,  delicious  water  there  is  in 
the  world,  what  would  you  do  ?  " 

And  one  said  that  he  would  live  in  the  soft  mud, 
and  iilways  be  wet  and  cool. 


GLOOSKAP   THE  DIVINITY.  119 

And  anotlior,  that  he  wouhl  phmgo  from  tho  rocks, 
and  take  headers,  divuig  into  the  deep,  eohl  water, 
drinking  as  he  dived. 

And  the  third,  that  he  wouhl  be  washed  uj)  and 
down  with  the  rippling  waves,  living  on  the  land,  yet 
ever  in  the  water. 

Then  the  fourth  said,  "  Verily,  you  know  not  how 
to  wisli,  and  I  will  teach  you.  I  would  live  in  the 
water  all  the  time,  and  swim  about  in  it  forever." 

Now  it  chanced  that  these  things  were  said  in  the 
hour  which,  wlien  it  passes  over  the  world,  all  the 
wishes  uttered  by  men  are  granted.  And  so  it  was 
with  these  Indians.  For  the  first  became  a  Leech,  the 
second  a  S})otted  Frog,  the  third  a  Crab,  which  is 
washed  up  and  down  with  the  tide,  and  the  fourth  a 
Fish.  Ere  this  there  had  been  in  all  the  world  none 
of  the  creatures  which  dwell  in  the  water,  and  now 
they  were  there,  and  of  all  kinds.  And  the  river 
came  rushing  and  roaring  on,  and  they  all  went  head- 
long down  to  the  sea,  to  be  washed  into  many  lands 
over  all  the  world. ^ 

^  This  was  tokl  liy  Toniali  Josephs.  It  is  given  much  more  im- 
perfectly ill  the  tale  of  Kitpooseagunow  in  the  llaud  inaimscript, 
and  in  the  Anglo-Indian  "  Storey  of  (iloosoap."  I  have  taken 
very  great  pains  in  this,  as  in  all  the  tales  written  down  from 
verbal  narration,  to  be  accurate  in  details,  and  to  convey  as  weil 
as  I  could  the  cpiaiut  manner  and  dry  humor  which  characterized 
the  style  of  the  narrator.  Even  white  men  do  not  tell  tiie  same 
story  in  the  same  way  to  everybody  ;  and  if  Toinah(]uah  and 
others  fully  expressed  their  feelings  to  nu-,  it  was  bccauso  they 
had  never  before  met  with  a  white  iiuiu  wlio  Uiitenud  to  them 


120  THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

How  the  Lord  of  Men  and  Beasts  strove  ^vlth  the  Mighty 
Wasis,  and  ivas  sliamefidUj  defeated. 

(Penobscot.) 

Now  it  came  to  pass  when  Glooskap  liacl  conquered 
all  his  enemies,  even  the  Kewuhqii .,  who  were  giants 
and  sorcerers,  and  the  iiiUoulin^  who  were  magicians, 
and  the  Pamola.,  who  is  the  evil  spirit  of  the  night 
air,  and  all  manner  of  ghosts,  witches,  devils,  canni- 
bals, and  goblins,  that  he  thought  upon  what  he  bad 
done,  and  wondered  if  his  work  was  at  an  end. 

And  he  said  this  to  a  certain  woman.  V>\\t  she  re- 
plied, "  ^ot  so  fast,  Master,  for  there  yet  remains 
One  whom  no  one  has  ever  conquered  or  got  the  bet- 
ter of  in  any  way,  and  who  will  remain  unconquered 
to  the  end  of  time." 

with  such  sympathy.  It  may  ho  observed  that  the  Tiulians  com- 
inoiily  say  that  wherever  the  bull-iroj;'  is  to  be  found  in  summer 
there  is  always  water.  It  is  not  to  be  understood,  in  this  tale, 
that  the  bull-frog*  is  supposed  to  have  merely  drunk  up  the  river. 
It  is  the  river  which  has  become  incarnate  in  him.  It  is  the  ice 
of  winter  penetrated  by  the  spear  of  the  sun  ;  that  is,  Glooskap. 
Thus,  in  another  talc,  a  frozen  river  tries,  us  a  man,  to  destroy 
the  hero,  but  is  melted  by  him.  Tlie  conception  of  the  hour  when 
all  wishes  are  granted,  and  the  abrupt  termination  of  the  whole 
m  a  grand  transformation  scene,  are  both  very  striking.  There 
is  something  like  the  former  in  Rabelais,  in  his  narrative  of 
the  golden  hatchet  ;  as  regards  the  latter,  it  is  like  the  ending 
of  a  Christmas  pantomime.  Indeed,  the  entire  tale  is  perfectly 
adapted  to  such  a  "  dramatization." 

I  have  been  told  by  an  old  Passamaquoddy  woman  that  the 
name  of  the  monster  who  swallowed  the  stream  was  Hahk-lee- 
he-nio. 


GLOOSKAP   THE  DIVINITY.  121 

"  And  who  is  ho  ?  "  iii([uir('(l  the  Master. 

"  It  is  the  mighty  ir^/.s/.s,"  she  rei)lie(l,  "and  tliere 
he  sits  ;  and  1  warn  you  that  if  you  meddle  with  liim 
you  will  be  in  sore  trouble." 

Now  ir^/.s/.s  was  the  Baby.  And  he  sat  on  tljo 
floor  sucking  a  piece  of  maple  -  sugar,  greatly  eon- 
tented,  troubling  no  one. 

As  the  Lord  of  ]Men  and  Beasts  had  never  married 
or  had  a  child,  he  knew  naught  of  the  way  of  manag- 
ing children.  Therefore  he  was  quite  certain,  as  is 
the  wont  of  such  })eo})le,  tliat  he  knew  all  about  it. 
So  he  turned  to  15a by  with  a  bewitching  smile  and 
bade  him  come  to  him. 

Then  Baby  smiled  again,  but  did  not  budge.  And 
the  Master  spake  sweetly  and  made  his  voice  like  that 
of  the  summer  bird,  but  it  was  of  no  avail,  for  AV^asis 
sjit  still  and  sucked  his  ma[)le-sugar. 

Tlien  the  iNIaster  frowned  and  s})oke  terribly,  and 
ordered  AVusis  to  come  crawling  to  him  innuediately. 
And  Bal)y  burst  out  into  crying  and  yelling,  but  did 
not  move  for  all  that. 

Then,  since  he  could  do  but  one  thing  more,  the 
Master  had  recourse  to  magic.  lie  used  his  most 
awful  si)ells,  and  sang  the  songs  which  raise  the  dead 
and  scare  the  devils.  And  Wasis  sat  and  looked  on 
admiringly,  and  seemed  to  find  it  very  interesting,  but 
all  the  same  he  never  moved  an  inch. 

So  Gh)oskap  gave  it  up  in  despair,  and  Wtisis,  sit- 
ting on  the  floor  in  the  sunshine,  went  yoo  !  (joo  !  and 
crowed. 


122      THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

And  to  tills  day  when  you  see  a  babe  well  con- 
tented, going  fjoo !  fjoo !  and  crowing,  and  no  one 
can  tell  why,  know  that  it  is  because  he  remembers 
the  time  when  he  overcame  the  Master  who  had  con- 
quered all  the  world.  For  of  all  the  beings  ^hat  have 
ever  been  since  the  beginning,  Baby  is  alone  the  only 
invincible  one.^ 

How  the  (jreat  Glooskap  fought  the  Giant  Sorcerers  at 
Saco,  and  turned  them  into  Fish. 

(Penobscot.) 
N'karnayoo^  of  old  times :  Woodcnit  atok  hagen 

1  I  am  indebted  for  this  **  miirclien  "  to  Maria  Saksis,  a  very 
intelligent  Penobscot  woman,  a,  widow  of  a  former  governor, 
•whom  I  met  at  North  Conway,  in  the  White  Mountains,  N.  H. 
In  her  dialect  Glooskap  is  invariably  called  Glus-gah-he.  She 
told  it  with  that  admirable  dry  drollery,  characteristic  of  a  good 
story-teller  in  a  race  wher(!  there  are  no  bad  ones.  The  exquisite 
humor  and  humanity  of  this  little  legend,  placed  as  a  pendant  to 
the  stupendous  successes  of  the  giant  hero,  are  such  as  to  entitle 
its  Indian  author  to  rank  as  a  genius.  I  have  frequently  asserted 
that  these  Wabanaki  or  Northeastern  Algonquin  tales  bore  to 
those  of  the  West  the  apparent  relation  of  originals  to  poor 
copies.  Let  the  reader  compare  this,  which  is  given  as  nearly 
word  for  word  as  was  possible  from  the  Indian  narrative,  with 
that  of  Manobozho-IIiawatha's  effort  to  compete  with  a  baby. 
The  Cherokee  account  is  that,  seeing  an  infant  sucking  its  own 
toe,  he  tried  to  do  the  same,  and  failed.  It  is  in  accounting  for 
the  unaccountable  crowing  of  Baby  that  the  point  of  the  Penob- 
scot story  lies.  Of  this  there  is  no  mention  made  in  the  Western 
tale,  which  is  utterly  wanting  in  any  feeling  as  to  the  power  of 
childhood  or  its  charm  over  the  strongest.  A  real  Indian  talc 
may  always  be  assumed  to  be  ancient  when  it  is  told  to  set  forth 
an  or'ujin.     This  gives  the  origin  (if  a  baby's  crowing. 


GLOOSKAP   THE  DIVINITY.  123 

Glusgahhe.  This  is  a  story  of  Glooskap  (P.).  There 
was  a  father  who  had  tluee  sons  and  a  daughter: 
they  were  rnt^oulin,  or  mighty  magicians  ;  they  were 
giants  ;  they  ate  men,  women,  and  children ;  they  did 
everything  that  was  wicked  and  horrible ;  and  the 
world  grew  tired  of  them  and  of  all  their  abomina- 
tions. Yet  when  this  family  was  young,  Glooskap  had 
been  their  friend ;  he  had  made  the  father  his  adopted 
father,  the  brothers  his  brothers,  the  sister  his  sister.^ 
Yet  as  they  grew  older,  and  he  began  to  hear  on  every 
side  of  their  wickedness,  he  said :  "  I  will  go  among 
them  and  find  if  this  be  true.  And  if  it  be  so,  they 
shall  die.  I  will  not  spare  one  of  those  who  oi)press 
and  devour  men,  I  do  not  care  who  he  may  be." 

This  family  was  at  Samgadlhawk^  or  Saco,  on  the 
sandy  field  which  is  in  the  Intervale  or  the  summer 
bed  of  the  Saco  River,  in  the  El-now-e-bit,  the  White 
Mountains,  between  Geh- sit- wall- zuch^  and  K'tchec 
penahbesk,'^  and  near  Oonahgemessuk  weegeet,  the 
Home  of  the  AVater  Fairies.^ 

^  The  Indians  make  formal  adoptions  of  relatives  of  every 
grade,  and  in  addition  to  this  use  all  the  terms  of  relationship  as 
friendly  greetings.  This  is  in  fact  made  apparent  ui  all  the  sto- 
ries in  this  collection. 

^  Geh-sit-wah-zuch,  "  many  mountains  "  (Pen.).  Moxmt  Kear- 
sargo,  so  called  from  the  several  lesser  peaks  around  it. 

8  K'tchee  f.enahcsk,  "the  great  rock,"  a  nuich  more  sensible 
and  appropriate  name  than  that  of  "  Cathedral  Rocks,"  which 
has  been  bestowed  upon  it  ;  also  chee  pcnahsk. 

*  Also  calliKl  from  a  legend,  OonaJujanessuk  kUuhhee,  the  Water 
Fairies'  Spring.     This  appropriate  and  beautiful  uame  has  been 


124  THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

Now  the  old  iniiii,  tlio  father  of  the  evil  magicians 
and  bis  adopted  fatlicr,  had  only  one  eye,  and  was 
half  j-^ray.^  And  Glooskaj)  made  himself  like  him,  — 
there  was  not  between  them  the  difference  of  a  hair ; 
and  having  this  form,  be  entered  the  wigwam  and  sat 
down  by  the  old  man.  And  the  brothers,  who  killed 
everybody,  not  sparing  one  living  soul,  hearing  a  talk- 
ing, looked  in  slyly,  and  seeing  the  new-comer,  so  like 
their  father  that  they  knew  not  which  was  which,  said, 
"  This  is  a  great  magician.  But  he  shall  be  tried  ere 
he  goes,  and  that  bitterly." 

Then  the  sister  took  the  tail  of  a  whale,  and  cooked 
it  for  the  stranger  to  eat.  But  as  it  lay  before  him, 
on  the  platter  and  on  his  knees,  the  elder  brother  en- 
tered, and  saying  rudely,  "  This  is  too  good  for  a  beg- 
gar like  you,"  took  it  away  to  his  own  wigwam.  Then 
Glooskap  spoke :  "  That  which  was  given  to  me  was 
mine ;  therefore  I  take  it  again."  And  sitting  still  he 
simply  icis/ied  for  it,  and  it  came  flying  into  the  plat- 
ter where  it  was  before.     So  he  ate  it. 

Then  the  brothers  said,  "  Indeed,  he  is  a  great  ma- 
gician. But  he  shall  be  tried  ere  he  goes,  and  that 
bitterly." 

rejected  in  favor  of  the  ridiculously  rococo  term  "  Diana's  Bath." 
As  there  is  a  "  Diana's  Bath  "  at  almost  every  summer  watering 
place  in  America,  North  Conway  must  of  course  have  one.  The 
absolute  antipathy  which  the  majority  of  Americans  manifest  for 
tlie  aboriginal  names,  even  in  a  translation,  is  really  remarkable. 
^  This  would  directly  connect  him  with  the  beings  which  are 
half  ston(>,  like  the  Oonahgemessuk,  or  water-goblins,  the  dwellers 
iu  Katahdin,  and  the  Eskimo  elves.  This  will  be  referred  to 
again. 


GLOOSKAP   THE  DIVINITY.  125 

When  he  had  eaten,  they  brought  in  a  niiglity  hone, 
the  jaw  of  a  whale,  and  tlie  ekh;st  brother,  with  i^reat 
ado,  and  using  both  his  arms  and  all  his  strength,  bent 
it  a  little.  Then  he  handed  it  to  Glooskap,  who  witii 
his  thumb  and  fingers  snapped  it  like  a  pipe-stenu 
And  the  brothers  said  again,  "  Truly,  this  is  a  great 
maijifian.  But  he  shall  for  all  that  be  tried  ere  he 
goes,  and  that  bitterly." 

Then  they  brought  a  great  pipe  full  of  the  strongest 
tobacco  ;  no  man  not  a  magician  could  have  smoked 
it.  And  it  was  passed  round  :  every  one  smoked  ;  the 
brotliers  blew  the  smoke  through  their  nostrils.  But 
Glooskap  filled  it  full,  and,  lighting  it,  burnt  all  the 
tobacco  to  ashes  at  one  pull,  and  blew  all  the  smoke 
through  his  nostrils  at  one  puff.  Then  the  brothers 
said  again  in  anger,  "  This  is  indeed  a  great  magician. 
Yet  he  shall  be  tried  again  ere  he  goes,  and  that  bit- 
terly."    But  they  never  said  it  again. 

And  they  still  tried  to  smoke  with  him,  and  the 
wigwam  was  closed  ;  they  hoped  to  smother  him  in 
smoke,  but  he  sat  and  puffed  away  as  if  he  had  been 
on  a  mountain-top,  till  they  coidd  bear  it  no  longer. 
And  one  said,  "  This  is  idle ;  let  us  go  and  play  at 
ball."  The  place  where  they  were  to  play  was  on  the 
sandy  plain  of  Samgadihawk,  or  Saco,  on  the  ])end  of 
the  river.i  And  the  game  begun ;  but  Glooskap  found 
that  the  ball  with  which  they  played  was  a  hideous 
skull ;  it  was  alive  and  snapped  at  his  heels,  and  had 

^  I  have  an  Indian  stone  pestle,  or  hominy  pounder,  which  I 
picked  up  on  the  site  of  this  ball-play. 


126  rilE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

lie  been  as  otlicr  men  and  it  liad  bitten  liim,  it  would 
have  taken  his  foot  off.  Then  Glooskap  laughed,  and 
said,  "  So  this  is  the  game  you  play.  Good,  but  let 
us  all  i)lay  with  our  own  balls."  So  he  stepped  up  to 
a  tree  on  the  edge  of  the  river-bed  and  broke  off  the 
end  of  a  bough,  and  it  turned  into  a  skull  ten  times 
more  terrible  than  the  other.  And  the  magieians  ran 
before  it  as  it  chased  them  as  a  lynx  chases  rabbits ; 
they  were  entirely  beaten.  Then  Glooskap  stamped 
on  the  sand,  and  the  waters  rose  and  came  rushing 
fearfully  from  the  mountains  adown  the  river-bed ;  the 
whole  land  rang  with  their  roar.  Now  Glooskap  sang 
a  magic  song,  which  changes  all  beings,  and  the  three 
brothers  and  their  father  became  the  ch'uiahmess^  a 
fish  which  is  as  long  and  large  as  a  man,  and  they 
went  headlong  down  on  the  flood,  to  the  deep  sea,  to 
dwell  there  forever.  And  the  magicians  had  on,  each 
of  them,  a  wampum  collar ;  wherefore  the  chhiahmess 
has  beneath  its  head,  as  one  may  say,  round  its  neck, 
the  wampum  collar,  as  may  be  seen  to  this  day.  And 
they  were  mighty  nitcoulin  in  their  time ;  but  they 
were  tried  before  they  went,  and  that  bitterly. 

Yes,  seeicafifi,  my  brother,  this  is  a  true  story.  For 
Glus-gah-be  was  a  great  man  in  his  day,  and  the  day 
will  come  when  I  shall  go  to  him  and  see  him.^ 

1  This  legend  is  from  a  single  authority,  Maria  Saksis. 


GLOOSKAP   THE  DIVINITY.  127 

How  GloosJcap  tvcnt  to  England  and  France,  and  ivas  the 

first  to  make  America  known  to  the  Earojjeans. 

(  Piissania(iuo(l(ly .) 

Tlierc  was  an  Indian  woman :  she  was  a  Woodchuck 
(Mon-in-kwess,  P.).  Slio  had  lost  a  boy;  she  always 
thought  of  him.  Once  there  came  to  her  a  strange 
boy  ;  he  called  her  mother. 

He  had  a  pipe  with  which  he  could  call  all  the  ani- 
mals, lie  said,  "  Mother,  if  you  let  any  one  have  this 
pipe  we  shall  starve." 

"Where  did  you  get  it?" 

"  A  stranger  gave  it  to  me." 

One  day  the  boy  was  making  a  canoe.  The  woman 
took  the  pipe  and  blew  it.  There  came  a  deer  and  a 
qioah-heet,  —  a  beaver.  They  came  running ;  the  deer 
came  first,  the  beaver  next.  The  beaver  had  a  stick 
in  his  mouth ;  he  gave  it  to  her,  and  said,  "  When- 
ever you  wish  to  kill  anything,  though  it  were  half  a 
mile  off,  point  this  stick  at  it."  She  pointed  it  at  tlio 
deer ;  it  fell  dead. 

The  boy  was  Glooskap.  He  was  building  a  stone 
canoe.  Every  morning  he  went  forth,  and  was  gone 
all  day.  lie  worked  a  year  at  it.  The  mother  had 
killed  many  animals.  When  the  great  canoe  was  fin- 
ished he  took  his  (adopted)  mother  to  see  it.  Ho  said 
that  he  would  make  sails  for  it.  She  asked  him,  "  Of 
what  will  you  make  them  ? "  He  answered,  "  Of 
leaves."  She  replied,  "  Let  the  leaves  alone.  I  have 
something  better."     She  had  many  buffalo  skins  al- 


128  THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

rcaily  tanned,  and  said,  "  Talcc  as  many  as  you 
need. 

lie  took  his  pii)e.  JIc  i)lp(!d  for  moose  ;  lie  piped  for 
elk  and  for  bear:  they  caiiu'.  lie  i)()intt'd  his  stick  at 
them :  they  were  slain.  1  le  dried  their  meat,  and  so 
provisioned  his  ureat  eanoe.  To  carry  water  he  killetl 
many  seals  ;   he  lilknl  their  bladders  with  water. 

So  they  sailed  across  the  sea.  This  was  before  the 
white  ])eople  had  ever  heard  of  America.  The  white 
men  did  not  discover  this  conntry  first  at  all.  Ciloos- 
kap  discovered  England,  and  told  them  abont  it.  He 
got  to  London.  The  pe<)i)le  had  never  seen  a  canoe 
before.     They  came  flo{;king"  down  to  look  at  it. 

The  Woodchnck  had  lost  her  boy.  This  boy  it  was 
who  first  discovered  America  (England?).  This  boy 
could  walk  on  the  water  and  fly  up  to  the  sky.^  He 
took  his  mother  to  England.  They  offered  him  a 
large  ship  for  his  stone  canoe.  He  refused  it.  He 
feared  lest  the  ship  should  burn.  They  offered  him 
servants.  He  refused  them.  They  gave  him  presents 
which  almost  overloaded  the  canoe.  They  gave  him 
an  anchor  and  an  English  flag. 

He  and  his  mother  went  to  France.  The  French 
people  fired  canncm  at  him  till  the  afternoon.  They 
could  not  hurt  the  stone  canoe.  In  the  night  Gloos- 
kap  drew  all  their  men-of-war  ashore.  Next  morning 
the  French  saw  this.  They  said,  "  Who  did  this  ?  " 
He  answered,  "  I  did  it." 

1  This  tale  was  taken  down  in  very  strange  and  confnsed  Eng- 
lish.    The  first  part  is  in  my  notes  almost  unintelligible. 


GLOOSKAP  THE  DIVINITY.  129 

Tlioy  took  Inin  prisoner.  Tlicy  put  liiiii  into  a  great 
cannon  and  iired  it  oft".  They  lookinl  into  the  camion, 
and  tiiero  he  sat  smoking  his  stone  l)ipo,  knocking  the 
ashes  ont. 

Tlie  king  heard  liow  they  had  treated  him.  lie  said 
it  was  wrong.  Ih;  who  eonhl  do  snch  deeds  mnst  bo 
a  great  man.  He  sent  for  Glooskaj),  who  replied,  "  I 
do  not  want  to  see  your  king.  I  came  to  this  country 
to  have  my  mother  hai)tized  as  a  Catholic."  Ti'cy 
sent  boats,  they  sent  a  coach  ;  lie  was  taken  to  tho 
king,  who  put  many  cpiestions  to  him. 

He  wished  to  liave  his  mother  christened.  It  was 
done.  They  called  her  Molly.^  Therefore  to  this  day 
all  woodclmeks  arc  called  Molly.  They  went  down  to 
the  shore  ;  to  please  the  king  Glooskap  drew  all  tho 
ships  into  the  sea  again.  So  the  king  gjive  him  what 
he  wanted,  and  he  returned  home.  Since  that  time 
white  men  have  come  to  America. 

This  is  an  old  Eskimo  tale,  greatly  modernized  and 
altered.  The  Eskimo  believe  in  a  kind  of  sorcerers 
or  s])irits,  who  have  instruments  which  they  merely 
point  at  people  or  animals,  to  kill  them.  I  think  that 
the  Indian  w^ho  told  me  this  story  (P.)  was  aware 
of  its  feebleness,  and  was  ashamed  to  attril)ute  such 
nonsense  to  Glooskap,  and  therefore  made  tho  hero  an 
Indian  named  Woodchuck.     r>ut  among  Mr.  Rand's 

*  Tlio  ludiiins  pronounce  tho  word  ^larie    ]M;ilili  or   IVIolIy. 
^laliliuskwess,  "  Miss  INIolly,"  soumls  like  Mou-iu-kwess,  a  wood- 
chiick.     Ileuce  this  very  poor  puu. 
8 


130      THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

Micmac  talcs  it  figures  as  a  later  tribute  to  the  mem- 
oi'y  of  the  great  hero. 

One  version  of  this  story  was  given  to  me  by  Toinah 
Josei)hs,  another  by  Mrs.  W.  Wallace  Brown.  In  the 
latter  Gloos]iai)'s  canoe  is  a  great  sliip,  with  all  kinds 
of  birds  for  sailors.  In  the  Shawnee  legend  of  the 
Celestial  Sisters  (Hiawatha  Legends),  a  youth  who 
goes  to  the  sky  must  take  with  him  one  of  every  kiud 
of  bird.  This  indicates  that  the  Olooskap  voyage 
meant  a  trip  to  heaven. 

Hov)  Glooskap  is  maldnrf  Arrows,  and  preparing  for  a 
Great  Battle.     The  Tw'd'ujht  of  the  Indian  Gods. 

(Piissainaquoddy.) 

"/s  Gloo^lcap  llrl/Kj  yetf''  "  Yes,  far  away ;  no 
one  knows  where.  Some  say  he  sailed  away  in  his 
stone  canoe  beyond  the  sea,  to  the  east,  but  he  will  re- 
turn in  it  one  day  ;  others,  that  he  went  to  the  west. 
One  story  tells  that  while  he  was  alive  those  who 
went  to  him  and  found  him  could  have  their  wishes 
given  to  them.  But  there  is  a  story  that  if  one  travels 
long,  and  is  not  afraid,  he  may  still  find  the  great 
sagamore  (^sogmo).  Yes.  He  lives  in  a  very  great,  a 
very  long  wigwam.  He  always  making  arrows.  One 
side  of  the  lodge  is  full  of  arrows  now.  They  so 
thick  as  that.  When  it  is  all  quite  full,  he  will  come 
forth  and  make  war.  He  never  allows  any  one  to 
enter  the  wigwam  while  he  is  making  these  arrows." 

"  And  on  lohom  will  he  make  tear  ?  "  "  He  will 
make  war  on  all,  Idll  all ;  there  will  be  no  more  world, 


OLOOSKAP   THE  DIVINITY.  131 

—  world  all  gone.  Dimno  how  quick,  —  inebbo  long 
time ;  all  bo  dead  then,  luebbu,  —  guess  it  will  bo 
long  time." 

''''Arc  any  to  he  saved  by  anyone?"'  "  Dunno. 
Me  hear  how  some  say  world  all  burn  .q)  some  day, 
water  all  boil  all  lire  ;  some  good  ones  b'e  taken  up  in 
good  heavens,  but  mo  dunno,  —  me  just  hear  that. 
Only  hear  so." 

It  was  owing  to  a  mere  cliancc  question  that  this 
account  of  the  Last  Day  was  o))tained  from  an  Indian. 
It  was  related  to  Mrs.  W.  Wallace  Brown,  of  Calais, 
Maine,  by  Mrs.  Lo  Cool,  an  old  Passama{iuoddy  In- 
dian. It  casts  a  great  light  on  the  myth  of  Glooskap, 
since  it  appears  tliat  a  day  is  to  conic  when,  like  Ar- 
thur, Barbarossa,  and  other  heroes  in  retreat,  he  is  to 
come  forth  at  a  new  twilight  of  the  gods,  exterminate 
the  I(/lcs7na?il^  and  establish  an  eternal  happy  hunt- 
ing-ground. Tliis  preparing  for  a  great  final  battle  is 
more  suggestive  of  Norse  or  Scandinavian  influence 
than  of  aught  else.  It  is  certainly  not  of  a  late  date, 
or  Christian,  but  it  is  very  much  like  the  Edda  and 
Ragnarok.  Heine  does  not  observe,  in  the  Twilight 
of  the  Gods,  that  Jupiter  or  Mars  intend  to  return 
and  conquer  the  world.  But  the  Norsemen  expected 
such  a  fight,  when  arrows  would  fly  like  hail,  and 
Glooskap  is  supposed  to  be  deliberately  preparing 
for  it. 

A  very  curious  point  remains  to  be  noted  in  this 
narration.     When  the  Indians  speak  of  Christian,  or 


132  THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

white,  or  civilizocl  toaeliings,  thoy  say,  "  I  heard,"  or, 
"  I  have  been  told."  This  they  never  do  as  regards 
their  own  ancient  traditions.  When  Mrs.  Le  Cool 
said  that  she  "had  heard"  that  some  were  to  be 
taken  up  into  fjood  heavens,  she  declared,  in  her  way, 
that  this  was  what  Christians  said,  but  that  she  was 
not  so  sure  of  it.  The  Northeastern  Algon(iuin  al- 
ways distinguish  very  accurately  between  their  an- 
cient lore  and  that  derived  from  the  whites.  I  have 
often  heard  French  fairy  tales  and  zEsop's  fables  In- 
dianizcd  to  perfection,  but  the  narrator  always  knew 
that  they  were  not  N'' Kavnayoo^  "  of  the  old  time." 

Glooskap  is  now  living  in  a  Norse-like  Asa-hcim ; 
but  there  is  to  come  a  day  when  the  arrows  will  be 
ready,  and  he  will  go  forth  and  slay  all  the  wicked. 
Malsum  the  Wolf,  his  twin  brother,  the  typical  colos- 
sal type  of  all  Evil,  will  come  to  life,  with  all  the 
giant  cannibals,  witches,  and  wild  devils  slain  of  old  ; 
but  the  champion  will  gird  on  his  magic  bolt,  and  the 
arrows  will  fly  in  a  rain  as  at  Kagnarok :  the  hero  will 
come  sailing  in  his  wonderful  canoe,  which  expands  to 
hold  an  army.     Thus  it  will  be  on 

"  That  day  of  wrath,  that  dreadful  day, 
When  heaven  and  earth  sliall  pass  away," 

with  all  things,  in  blood  and  death  an<l  fire.  Then 
there  will  come  the  eternal  happy  hunting-grounds. 

If  this  was  derived  from  Christian  priests,  it  must 
be  admitted  that  it  has  changed  wonderfully  on  the 
way.  It  is  to  me  very  heathen,  grindy  archaic,  and 
with   the   strong   stamp  of   an   original.     Its  resem- 


GLOOSKAP   THE  DIVINITY.  133 

blance  to  the  Norse  is  striking.  Either  the  Norse- 
men told  it  to  the  Eskimo  and  the  Indians,  or  tlie  hit- 
ter to  the  Norsemen.  None  know,  after  all,  what  was 
going  on  for  ages  in  the  early  time,  up  about  Jotun- 
heim,  in  the  North  Atlantic !  Vessels  came  to  New- 
foundland to  fish  for  cod  since  unknown  antiquity, 
and,  returning,  reported  that  they  had  been  to  Tar- 
tary. 

It  may  be  assumed  at  once  that  this  Indian  Last 
Battle  of  the  Giants,  or  of  the  good  hero  giants  against 
the  Evil,  led  by  the  Malsum-Fenris  AVolf,  was  not  de- 
rived from  the  Canadian  French.  The  influence  of 
the  latter  is  to  be  found  even  among  the  Chij>pcwas, 
but  they  never  dealt  in  myths  like  this. 

It  is  very  remarkable  indeed  that  the  one  great 
princiide  of  the  Norse  mythology  is  identical  with  that 
of  the  Indian.  So  long  as  man  shall  make  war  and 
heroism  his  standard,  just  so  long  his  hero  god  exists. 
But  there  will  come  a  day  when  mankind  can  war  no 
more,  —  when  higher  civilization  nuist  prevail.  Then 
there  will  be  a  great  final  war,  and  death  of  the  he- 
rocs,   and  death  of   their  foes,  and   after  all  a  new 

world. 

"  Then  shall  another  como 

yet  mightier, 
altlio'.i<;h  I  dare  not 
bis  name  declare. 
Few  may  sec 
further  forth 
than  when  Odin 
meets  the  wolf." 

(Ilyndluloid,  42.) 


134  THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

The  Norsemen  may  have  d^a^vn  this  from  a  Chris- 
tian source  ;  but  the  Indian,  to  judge  by  form,  spirit, 
and  expression,  would  seem  to  have  taken  it  from  the 
Norse. 

How  Glooskap  found  the  Summer. 

In  the  long  ago  time  when  people  lived  always  in 
the  early  red  morning,  before  sunrise,  before  the 
Squid  to  neck  was  peopled  as  to-day,  Glooskap  went 
very  far  north,  where  all  was  ice. 

He  came  to  a  wigwam.  Therein  he  found  a  giant, 
a  great  giant,  for  he  was  Winter.  Glooskap  entered  ; 
he  sat  down.  Then  Winter  gave  him  a  pipe  ;  he 
smoked,  and  the  giant  t  Id  tales  of  the  old  times. 

The  charm  was  on  him  ;  it  was  the  Frost.  The  giant 
talked  on  and  froze,  and  Glooskap  fell  asleep.  lie 
slept  for  six  months,  like  a  toad.  Then  the  charm 
fled,  and  he  awoke.  He  went  his  way  home ;  he  went 
to  the  south,  and  at  every  step  it  grew  warmer,  and 
the  flowers  began  to  come  up  and  talk  to  him. 

He  came  to  where  there  were  many  little  ones 
dancing  in  the  forest ;  their  queen  was  Summer.  I 
am  singing  the  truth  :  it  was  Sunnner,  the  most  beau- 
tiful one  ever  born.  He  caught  her  up  ;  he  kept  her 
by  a  crafty  trick.  The  Master  cut  a  moose-hide  into 
a  long  cord :  as  ho  ran  away  with  Summer  he  let  the 
end  trail  behind  him. 

They,  the  fairies  of  Liglit,  pulled  at  the  cord,  but 
as  Glooskap  ran,  the  cord  ran  out,  and  though  they 
pulled  he  left  them  far  away.    So  he  came  to  the  lodge 


GLOOSKAP  THE  DIVINITY.  135 

of  Winter,  but  now  he  had  Summer  in  his  bosom ; 
and  Winter  welcomed  him,  for  he  hoped  to  freeze  him 
again  to  sleep.     I  am  singing  the  song  of  Summer. 

But  this  time  the  Master  did  the  talking.  This 
time  his  m'tcoiilin  was  the  strongest.  And  ere  long 
the  sweat  ran  down  Winter's  face,  and  then  he  melted 
more  and  quite  away,  as  did  the  wigwam.  Then  c very- 
thing  awoke ;  the  grass  grew,  the  fairies  came  out, 
and  the  snow  ran  down  the  rivers,  carrying  away  the 
dead  leaves.  Then  Glooskap  left  Summer  with  them, 
and  went  home. 

This  poem  —  for  it  is  such  —  was  related  to  Mrs. 
W.  Wallace  Brown  by  an  Indian  named  Neptune.  It 
appears  to  be  the  completer  form  of  the  beautiful 
allegory  of  Winter  and  Spring  given  in  the  Hiawatha 
Legends  as  Peboan  and  Seegwimi  (Odjibwa).  The 
struggle  between  Spring  and  Winter,  Summer  and 
Winter,  or  Heat  and  Cold,  represented  as  incarnate 
human  or  mythic  beings,  forms  the  subject  of  several 
Indian  legends,  as  it  does  a  part  of  the  Hymiskrida, 
in  the  Edda.  The  German  J.  B.  Friedreich  (Symbo- 
lik  der  Natur,  Wiirzburg,  1859)  remarks  that  in  the 
Bible,  Job  xxxviii.  28,  and  in  tlie  Song  of  the  Three 
in  the  Fiery  Furnace,  Ice  and  Snow  are  spoken  of  as 
intelligences. 

Heat  and  cold,  in  classic  times,  were  supposed  to  be 
united,  yet  in  conflict,  in  the  lightninp;  and  hail  (Vii'gil, 
-^n.  VIII.  429),  the  symbol  for  this  being  a  twisted 
horn.     In  the  legend  of  the  Culloo  the  frost  giantess 


136  THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

can  only  be  killed  by  a  crooked  horn  thrust  Into  her 
ear.  The  horn  darts  out  at  once  into  incredible, 
irrej^ular  length,  and  evidently  means  lightning.  In 
the  Edda  the  he-goat  is,  on  account  of  his  horns,  tlie 
symbol  of  lightning  and  storm.  (Sclnvcnk,  Slnnbil- 
den  der  alten  Volker.)  The  G'ala-horn  of  the  Edda 
(Nyer  up.  Diet.  Scan.  Mythol.)  Is  the  thunder  which 
sununons  the  Elves.  "  IMIolncr,  the  hammer  of  Thor, 
with  which  he  kills  frost  giants,  Is  the  lightning." 
(Kirchner,  Tlior's  Donnerkeil,  Neu  Strelitz,  1853,  p. 
GO.)  The  coincidence  of  the  symbols  in  the  Edda 
with  that  of  the  liglitnlng  horn  In  the  Indian  legend 
is  very  curious,  if  nothing  more. 

The  cord  which  Glooskap  luirolls,  and  with  which 
he  deceives  the  fairies,  who  think  they  liave  him  fast, 
while  he  Is  escaping,  means  delusive  speech  or  plau- 
sible talk.     To  "  talk  like  paying  out  rope  "  is  an  old 

simile. 

"  Si^eecli  runes  thou  luust  know, 

If  thou  wilt  that  no  one 

for  injury  with  liate  requite  thee. 

Those  thou  must  wind, 

Those  thou  must  wrap  round  (thee), 

Those  thou  must  altogether  place 

hi  the  assembly, 

whore  people  have 

into  full  court  to  go."         (Sigrdrifumal.) 

This  Is  a  merely  accidental  coincidence,  but  It  illus- 
trates the  meaning  of  the  myth.  In  both  cases  It  is 
"  wound  or  wrapped  around "  and  rapidly  unrolled, 
and  the  same  simile. 


niOOSKAP   THE  DIVINITY.  137 

The  foUowin;^  poem  on  Glooskap  may  be  appropri- 
ately placed  ill  tliis  work.  The  allusion  to  the  agates 
of  Cape  Blomidon  refers  to  a  tradition  given  by  S.  T. 
liand,  which  states  that  when  Glooskap  would  make 
his  adopted  grandmother  young  again  he  created  the 
brilliant  stones,  which  are  still  found  at  that  place,  to 
adorn  her.^ 

THE  LEGEXD  OF  GLOOSKAP. 

Bathed  in  the  sunshine  still  as  of  yore 
Stretches  the  peaceful  Acadian  shore  ; 
Fertile  meadows  and  fields  of  grain 
Smile  as  they  drink  the  summer  rain. 

There  like  a  sentinel,  grim  and  gray, 
lilomidon  stands  at  the  head  of  the  bay, 
And  the  famous  Fund}'  tides,  at  will, 
Sweep  into  Minas  Basin  still. 

With  wondrous  beauty  the  Gaspercanx 
Winds  its  way  to  the  sea  below. 
And  the  old  Acadian  Grand  Pre 
Is  the  home  of  prosperous  men  to-day. 

The  })lace  wliere  Basil  the  blacksmith  wrought, 
In  the  glow  of  his  forge,  is  a  classic  spot, 
And  every  summer  tourists  are  seen 
In  the  fairy  haunts  of  Evangeline. 

But  the  old  Acadian  woods  and  shores, 
Rich  in  beautiful  legend  stores, 
Were  once  the  home  of  an  older  race, 
W^ho  wove  their  epics  with  untaught  grace. 

^  Youth's  Companion. 


138  THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

Long  ere  the  dilics  that  guard  for  aye 
From  the  merciless  tides  the  ohl  Griiiid  Prd, 
Built  by  the  Frenchman's  tireless  hands, 
Grew  round  the  rich  Acadian  lauds, 

The  Micmac  sailed  in  his  birch  canoo 
Over  the  13asin,  calm  and  blue  ; 
Speared  the  salmon,  his  heart's  desire, 
Danced  and  slept  by  his  wigwam  lire  ; 

Far  in  the  depth  of  the  forest  gray 
Hunted  the  moose  the  livelong  day. 
While  the  mother  sang  to  her  Micmac  child 
Songs  of  the  forest,  weii'd  and  wild. 

Over  the  tribe,  with  jealous  eye, 
Watched  the  Great  Spirit  from  on  high. 
While  on  the  crest  of  Blomidou 
Glooskap,  the  God-man,  dwelt  alone. 

No  matter  how  far  his  feet  might  stray 
From  the  favorite  haunts  of  his  tribe  away, 
Glooskap  could  hear  the  Indian's  prayer, 
And  send  some  message  of  comfort  there. 

Glooskap  it  was  who  taught  the  use 

Of  the  bow  and  the  spear,  and  sent  the  moose 

Into  the  Indian  hunter's  hands  ; 

Glooskap  who  strewed  the  shining  sands 

Of  the  tide-swept  beach  of  the  stormy  bay 
With  amethysts  purple  and  agates  gray, 
And  brought  to  each  newly  wedded  pair 
The  Great  Spirit's  benediction  fair. 


GLOOSKAP   THE  DIVINITY.  139 

But  the  white  man  came,  and  with  ruthless  haud 
Cleared  the  forests  and  sowed  the  land, 
And  drove  from  their  haunts  by  the  sunny  shore 
Mieiuac  and  moose,  foreverniore. 

And  Glooskap,  saddened  and  sore  distressed, 
Took  his  way  to  tlie  unknown  West, 
And  the  Micmae  kindled  his  wigwam  lire 
Far  from  the  gi'ave  of  his  child  and  his  sire  ; 

Where  now,  as  he  weaves  his  basket  gay, 
And  paddles  his  birch  canoe  away, 
lie  dreams  of  the  happy  time  for  men 
When  Glooskap  shall  come  to  his  tribe  again. 

AuTiiuK  Wentwoutii  Eaton. 


THE  MERllY  TALES  OF  LOX,   THE   MIS- 
CHIEF MAKEli, 

COMMONLY   KNOWN   AS   THE   INDIAN   DEVIL. 

Of  the  Surprising  and  Singular  Adoentitres  of  two  Water 
Fairies  who  were  also  ireasels,  and  how  theg  each  be- 
came the  Bride  of  a  Star.  Including  the  Mijsterious 
and  Wonderful  Works  of  Lox,  the  Great  Indian  DeviZj 
who  rose  from  the  Dead. 

(Micmac  and  Passamaquoddy.) 

Wee-zifj-yik-keHcyook.  "  Of  old  times."  Far  back 
in  tlie  forest,  by  a  brook,  dwelt  two  young'  men,  Abis- 
tanoocli,  the  Marten,  and  Team,  the  Moose.  Of  these 
eacli  had  a  wigwam,  and  therewith  a  grandmother  who 
kept  house.  And  Team  hunted  and  worked  industri- 
ously, but  ^Master  Marten  was  greatly  moalet  (M.), 
which  signifies  one  who  liveth  u})on  his  neighbors,  de- 
pending on  their  good  nature,  even  as  he  that  planteth 
corn  and  beans  depends  upon  the  pleasant  smiles  of 
the  sun ;  whence  it  came  to  pass  that  wherever  vict- 
uals were  in  store  there  too  his  presence  did  greatly 
abound. 

Now  it  happened  that  one  day  Team,  the  Moose,  had 
killed  a  bear,  and  brought  home  a  single  load  of  the 
meat,  leaving  the  rest  to  be  looked  after  anon.  And 
being  thrifty,  and  not  caring  to  feed  those  who  fed 


THE  MERRY  TALES  OF  LOX.  141 

him  not,  neither  did  they  thunk,  he  said  uuto  himself, 
and  also  to  his  gvundmother,  "  Truly,  the  eyes  of  }>ldv- 
teu  shall  not  see  this  thing,  his  nose  shall  not  smell 
thereof,  neither  shall  his  tongue  taste  it ;  so  let  not  the 
tidinu's  of  our  jjood  luck  fio  forth  from  the  wiiiwam." 
"  Yes,"  replied  the  old  woman,  "  and  well  and  wisely 
thou  speakest,  my  son.  iiut  we  have  this  day  broken 
our  kettle,  while  Marten  has  brought  in  a  new  one. 
Behold,  I  will  go  and  borrow  it,  and  having  cooked  in 
it  1  will  wash  and  wipe  it,  so  that  there  shall  be  no 
sign  of  what  we  did  therewitli,  and  so  return  it." 

Now  this  was  done,  but  he  who  is  moaht  and  a 
haunter  of  feasts  is  like  a  hunter  of  beasts  :  he  knows 
well  from  a  small  sign  where  there  is  a  large  load, 
and  the  borrowing  of  kettles  means  the  boiling  of 
victuals  therein.  So  havinn-  in  him  somewhat  of 
sorcery,  he  did  but  step  to  his  friend's  wigwam,  and, 
peeping  tiirougli  a  crevice,  saw  a  great  store  of  bear's 
meat.  And  when  the  grandmother  of  Moose  came 
unto  him  to  return  the  kettle,  just  as  she  entered  the 
lodge  there  arose  from  it  a  savory  steam,  and  look- 
ing in  it  was  full  of  well-cooked  food.  And  Marten 
thanked  lier  greatly,  yet  she,  being  put  to  shame,  fled 
to  her  own  home.  But  Moose  said  it  was  no  matter, 
so  the  next  day  they  went  to  the  woods  together,  and 
all  was  well. 

Now  it  befell  Marten,  as  it  miglit  have  befallen  any 
other  man,  that  one  day  he  came  to  a  distant  and 
hmely  lake  in  the  mountains.  Yet  there,  stei)i)ing 
softly  as  a  cat  behind  the  rocks  hung  with  grapevines. 


142      THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

lio  hoard  lauj,^liing  and  si)]a.sliiiig,  and  a  pleasant  sound 
as  of  girls'  voices.  So,  pee})ing  carefully,  he  saw  many 
maids  merrily  batliing  in  the  lake  :  anil  these  were  of 
the  fairy  race,  who  dwell  in  deep  waters  and  dark 
caves,  and  keep  away  from  mankind.  And  seeing 
their  garments  lying  on  the  shore,  and  beholding 
among  the  damsels  one  whom  he  desired  to  obtain,^ 
Marten  quietly  slipj)ed  along  unseen,  as  all  of  his 
species  can  do,  till  he  had  the  clothes  in  his  hands. 
For  being  tinctured  with  magic  and  learned  in  the 
lore  of  all  kind  of  goblins,  elves,  and  witches.  Master 
Marten  knew  that  when  Naiads  are  naked  and  a  man 
has  their  garments  ho  holds  them  at  his  mercy.  For 
in  the  ai)parel  lies  their  fairy  power;  and  if  you 
doubt  it,  do  but  give  it  a  trial  and  see  for  yourself ! 

And  having  done  this,  the  merry  fellow  ran  inland 
with  a  brave  whoop,  which  the  fairies  hearing,  they 
in  a  great  rage  ran  after  the  ravisher  of  their  robes. 
But  she  whom  he  desired  outstrii)ped  the  rest,  and 
when  she  approached  him  he  did  but  tap  her  lightly 
on  tlio  head  with  a  small  stick,  according  to  a  certain 
ancient  prescription  followed  in  Fairy -land,  which 
midvcs  of  a  woman  a  wife ;  w]icrcui)on  she,  according 

^  Tlu'i'e  are  many  of  these  stories  which  indicate  passionate 
and  deeply  seated  attaehnient,  but  I  never  once  heard  a  real  In- 
dian say  that  man  or  woman  loved,  though  they  have  words 
which  fully  express  it.  *'  He  wanted  her  "  is  the  nearest  ap- 
proach to  tendeiiicss  winch  I  have  ever  heard  from  them.  This 
is  not  the  result  of  a  want  of  feeling,  but  of  the  suppression  of  all 
manifestation  of  it,  to  wiiiuh  every  red  mau  is  trained  from 
earliest  iufauey. 


THE  MERRY  TALES  OF  LOX,  143 

to  the  antique  rite,  belnj?  astonished  to  find  liersclf  so 
suddenly  married,  fainted  dead  away,  and  was  carried 
off  in  peace.  And  as  for  the  clothes  of  the  others,  the 
Marten  gave  them  back  without  taking  fee  or  re- 
wards. 

Then  Team,  the  Moose,  wlio  was  a  good  soul,  but 
not  wise  above  all  the  world,  coming  home  and  find- 
ing Marten  manied,  wished  also  for  a  wife.  And 
having  heard  all  tlie  tale,  he  said,  "  Well,  if  it  is  no 
harder  than  that,  't  is  as  easy  as  sucking  a  honey- 
suckle, and  I  am  as  good  as  married."  And  going 
to  the  pond  in  the  mountains,  among  the  rocks  and 
behind  the  grapevines,  he  too  behehl  the  virgins  jump- 
ing, flapi)ing,  splashing,  and  mischieving  merrily,  like 
mad  minxes,  in  the  water ;  whereat  he,  being  all  of  a 
rage,  as  it  were,  caught  up  the  clothes  of  these  poor 
maids  and  ran ;  she  whom  he  most  admired  catching 
up  with  him.  And  being  resolved  to  do  the  thing 
thoroughly,  he  grapjded  up  a  great  club  and  gave  her 
a  bang  on  her  small  head,  which  stunncnl  her  indeed, 
and  that  forever,  inasnuich  as  she  was  slain  outiight. 
So  the  Moose  remained  unmarried. 

Now  Team  was  one  of  the  kind  not  uncommon  in 
this  world,  w^ho  hold  that  if  any  other  man  has  or  gets 
more  than  they  have,  then  they  arc  deeply  wronged. 
And  it  had  come  to  pass  that  ]\Iaster  Marten,  finding 
that  his  wife  yearned  greatly  for  the  society  of  her 
sisters,  offered  to  take  yet  another  of  them  in  mar- 
riage, merely  to  oblige  his  wife ;  for  in  such  a  kind 
of  benevolence  he  was  one  of  the  best  souls  that  ever 


144      THE  ALGONQUhY  LEGENDS. 

lived,  anil  rather  than  liavo  troiibh;  in  the  family  ho 
woiihl  have  weddeil  all  the  pretty  skills  in  the  coun- 
try. So  going  as  before  to  the  })ond  in  the  moun- 
tains, among  ^he  rocks  and  behind  the  grapevines, 
he,  by  the  same  device,  ea})tured  yet  another  fairy, 
whom,  taking  home,  he  weihled. 

Yet  Team  took  this  sadly  to  heart,  and  willed  that 
IVIarten  should  give  him  this  last  si)onse,  to  which 
Marti'n  would  in  nowise  agree.  Truly,  Team  argued 
earnestly  that  as  he  had  no  wife,  and  nt)  wisdom 
wherewith  to  win  one,  of  course  he  must  have  one 
of  jMarten's,  or  that  JMarten  should  go  and  get  him 
one.  To  which  iMartcn  rei)lied  that  Moose  might 
skin  his  own  skunks,  and  fish  for  his  own  minnows, 
and  also  paddle  his  own  canoe  to  the  devil,  if  it  so 
pleased  him,  —  all  of  these  being  ai)i)roved  Indian 
sayings  of  high  and  racy  antiipiity.  Whereupon  Team 
sought  to  persuade  Marten  with  a  club,  who  i  tve  a 
soft  answer  by  shooting  a  flint-headed  arrow  through 
Team's  scaljvlock ;  and  this  friendsliip  they  continued 
for  many  days,  ])assing  their  evenings  in  manufactur- 
ing missiles,  and  the  mornings  in  sending  them  one  at 
the  other. 

Now  the  fairy  water-wives,  not  being  accustomed  to 
this  kind  of  intimacy,  sought  to  subtract  themselves 
from  it.  So  one  morning,  when  Marten  and  Team 
were  most  industriously  endeavoring  to  effect  mutual 
nnu'der,  the  two  wives  of  the  former  fled  afar  to  seek 
fortune,  and  succeeded  therein  to  perfection.  And  it 
came  to  pass  when  the  sun  had  set  and  the  voice  of 


THE  MERRY  TALKS    OF  LOX.  145 

Bumolc,  tlio  Spirit  of  Ni<^]it,  was  licai^l  afar  on  lii^^h, 
and  3(il)aueliset  (P.),  tho  Nij;lit- Walker,  siioiiu  over 
all,  that  the  two  l)ri(l(>s  lay  in  an  oak  o])eniii;^  of  tlio 
forest,  and  looked  at  l*\ses'iiiuk,  tlic  Stars,  and  talked 
about  them  even  as  eiuldren  might  do.  And  one 
said  to  the  other,  ''  If  those  Stars  be  men,  whieh 
would  you  have  for  a  husband?"  ''  Hy  my  faith," 
replied  the  other,  ''  it  should  be  that  little  red,  twin- 
kling fellow,  for  I  like  the  little  stars  best."  "  And 
I,"  said  the  other,  "•  will  wed  the  Wisawaioo  P'ses'm 
(P.),  the  Great  l"(dlow  Star,  for  I  love  the  largo 
stars."     And,  saying  this  in  jest,  they  fell  asleep. 

But  many  a  word  s})oken  in  jest  is  reealled  in  ear- 
nest, as  these  brides  learned  when  they  awoke,  and 
found  themselves  married  again  in  the  Indian  man- 
ner, at  only  a  word.  Yov  slu;  who  had  wislied  for  tho 
Gi'eat  Yellow  Shining  Star,  as  she  opened  her  eyes, 
heard  a  n»an's  voiee  rsay,  "  Talce  care,  or  you  will  up- 
set my  war-paint !  "  ^  And  lo,  there  lay  by  her  side  a 
great  and  handsome  man,  very  noble,  with  large  and 
lustrous  ej^es.-  Then  the  other,  as  she  awoke  and 
stirred,  heard  a  little  feeble,  cracked    \'oice  crying, 

^  Sckroon  (red  oolu'e). 

^  In  the  r.insaniiuiiioddy  version  of  this  tivk;,  given  me  by 
Toniah  Josephs,  the  brides  iiwako  in  Star-Land.  Tho  husbands 
arc  both  ehh-rly  men,  and  lie  who  is  the  Yellow  Star  has  bright 
yellow  corners  to  his  eyes,  while  the  other  has  red.  In  another 
the  Yellow  Star  is  ealled  Walx  jin,i\w  White.  Whilt!  they  arc  all 
distinctly  forms  of  one  tale,  the  three  dill'er  so  :'iiich  (hat  F  have 
had  great  diriiculty  in  reconstituting  what  appears  to  be  the 
original  h'geud. 

10 


14G  THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

"  Tiike  care,  or  you  will  spill  my  eye-water  !  "  ^  And 
by  her  was  the  smaller  star,  whom  slie  had  chosen; 
but  he  was  a  weak-looking  old  fellow,  with  little  red, 
twinkling  eyes.  And  as  they  had  chosen  so  it  came 
unto  them. 

But  yellow  or  red,  young  or  old,  in  a  few  days  they 
both  grew  a-weary  of  the  star  country  to  which  tliey 
wore  taken,  and  wislicd  to  return  to  the  earth.  And 
then  that  came  to  })ass  which  made  them  yearn  with 
tenfold  longing  ;  for  their  husbands,  ^^•ho  were  absent 
all  day  hunting,  had  pointed  out  to  them  a  large  flat 
stone,  which  they  were  on  no  account  to  lift ;  which 
they  obeyed  in  this  wise,  that  they  did  not  both  lift 
the  stone,  but  only  the  younger,  wlio,  as  soon  as  the 
Stars  had  gone  to  the  greenwood,  rushed  to  tlie  slab, 
and,  lifting  it  up,  gazed  greedily  down  into  the  hole 
beneath.  And  wliat  she  saw  was  wonderfid,  for  it  was 
the  sky  itself,  and  directly  under  them  was  the  world 
in  wliich  they  had  lived,  and  specially  in  sight  was 
the  home  of  their  childhood,  with  all  its  woods  and 
rivers.  A  ad  then  the  elder  having  looked,  both  al- 
most broke  tlieir  hearts  with  weeping. 

Now  the  Stars  wei-e  by  no  means  such  evil-minded 
men  as  you  may  have  deemed  :  for  having  perceived 
by  magic  that  their  wives  had  looked  through  the 
hole  in  the  sky,  and  knowing  that  they  were  h'ing 
when  they  denied  it,  they  gave  them  leave  to  go  back 
to  eartli.  Yet  there  were  c(mdlti()ns,  and  those  not 
easy  to  such  fidgety  damsels  as  these :  for  they  said, 
1  Nehijcgwode  (eye  metlieiiu',  M.). 


THE  MERRY  TALES   OF  LOX.  147 

"  Ye  shall  iiL  tog'ctlier  all  this  nii;ht,  and  in  tho  nioiii- 
iiig"  when  ye  awake  ye  shall  be  in  no  haste  to  open 
your  eyes  or  to  uncover  your  faces.  A\'ait  until  ye 
shall  have  heard  the  song  of  tlie  IOsec-f/ec-(/il-lassis 
(P.),  or  chiek-a-dee-dee.  And  c\en  then  ye  shall  not 
arise,  but  be  quiet  until  the  song  of  the  red  scjiurrel 
shall  be  heard.  iVnd  even  tht;n  ye  nnist  wait  and 
kec})  your  faces  coveretl  and  your  eyes  closed  until  ye 
hear  the  striped  squirrel  sing.  And  then  ye  may 
leave  your  bed  and  look  around." 

Now  the  younger  w  ife  was  e\'er  inq)atient,  and  when 
the  chick-a-dee-deo  sang  she  would  have  lea})cd  iq)  at 
once,  but  tlie  elder  restrained  her.  "  AVait,"  slie  said, 
"my  sister,  until  we  hear  the  AhalkakmooecJi.''''  ^ 
And  she  lay  still  till  iXm  Adoo-doo-dccli-  began  his 
early  chatter  and  his  moi-ning's  work.  Then,  without 
waiting,  she  junqied  iq»,  as  did  tlie  elder,  wlien  they 
found  themselves  indeed  on  eartli,  but  in  the  summit 
of  a  tall,  spreading  hendoek-tree,  and  that  in  such  a 
manner  that  tliey  could  not  descend  without  assist- 
ance. And  it  had  come  to  ])ass  in  this  wis(! :  for  as 
eacli  song  was  sung  by  the  bird  and  the  S(|uirrels,  tliey 
had  come  nearer  and  nearer  to  the  eartli,  even  as  the 
light  of  day  drew  near,  but  as  they  could  not  delay 
they  had  been  deserted."^ 

^  ( I  round  scjuiiTcl.  -  Hod  sciulrrcl. 

'^  A  want  of  jmticnco  or  of  dit^Miif y,  and  rcstlcssiirss,  are  more 
scorned  Ity  every  Indian  than  any  otlicr  fanit  This  is  not  the 
only  story  in  whicli  jteoph'  arc  rc]»r('S('nti'(l  as  licinjf  punished  for 
being  unalih' to  bide  their  time,  (iiooskaji  was  specially  severe 
on  all  such  sinners. 


148  THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

And  as  tlicy  sat  there  and  day  dawned,  men  of  tlie 
different  Indian  families  went  by,  and  mito  all  of 
these  they  cried  for  helj).  It  is  true  that  their  star 
husbanils  had  made  for  them  in  the  tree  a  bed  of 
moss,  but  they  cared  not  to  rest  in  the  hemlock,  for 
all  that.^  And  of  all  the  beasts  of  the  forest  or  men 
of  the  clearing,  who  should  be  the  first  to  appear  but 
Team,  or  Master  jVIoose,  himself.  And  to  him  they 
cried,  '"''  JV^sescjieji-fqiktrahlln,  ii\'<(>se/icn  f^^  "Oh,  our 
(iXdev  brother,  let  us  free ;  take  us  down,  and  we  will 
be  your  two  dear  little  wives,  and  go  home  with  you." 
But  he,  looking  up  scornfully,  said,  "  I  was  married 
this  autumn."     And  so  he  went  his  way. 

And  he  who  next  came  was  the  shaggy  Bear,  or 
moo'in,  to  whom  they  made  the  same  rec^uest,  offering 
themselves  for  no  higher  price  than  to  be  taken  down 
safely  out  of  tiieir  nest.  But  he  growled  out  that  he 
had  been  married  in  the  spring,  and  that  one  wife  was 
enough  for  any  man.     So  he  went  his  way.^ 

^  111  another  very  full  version  of  this  legend  (M.),  the  water- 
wives  are  called  Weasels  (^Uskoulsk),  "from  their  great  white- 
ness." This,  however,  indicates  supernatural  fairness  oi  heauty. 
In  the  same  story  the  tree  is  a  pine,  not  a  hemlock.  Iiisiguifi- 
cant  as  these  differences  may  a]>pear,  they  are  of  primary  im- 
portance in  the  elucidation  of  a  myth. 

-  N.  B.  —  There  is  a  joke  hero.  The  animals  who  pass  by  the 
tree  each  mate  at  the  season  of  the  year  when  they  declare  tiiat 
they  were  married.  TheWliite  Ladies,  weasels  or  ermines,  tliere- 
forc,  came  at  the  wrong  time.  The  fickle,  variable  nature  as- 
cril  I'd  to  woman,  varinni  rt  mntaJiUe  xnnprr  fcmina,  is  su])])osed 
to  be  most  decidedly  expressed  by  such  blender,  slippery,  iictivc 
little  animals. 


THE  MERRY  TALES  OF  LOX.  149 

And  then  who  should  come  along  but  Miivton  hini- 
sclt',  even  the  Abistanooeh,  whom  they  had  deserted  I 
And  they  cried  out  for  joy,  begging  liini  to  take  them 
})ack.  V)\\t  he,  beliaving  as  if  they  were  utter  stran- 
gers, replied  that  he  hatl  been  married  in  the  early 
spring  to  one  of  his  own  tribe,  and  unto  a  damsel 
wiiose  name  was  ^larten,  and  that  it  was  not  seendy 
for  animals  to  wed  out  of  their  own  kind.  So  ho 
scampered  off,  leaving  the  little  Weasels  all  alone. 

And  last  of  all  came  Lox,  whom  hunters  call  the 
Indian  Devil,^  and  others  the  AVolverine,  who  is  ex- 
ceeding subtle  above  the  beasts  of  the  forest,  and  wlio 
is  gifted  witli  more  evil  miseliief  than  all  of  tliem  in 
one.  And  when  the  Weasels  called  to  him  for  help 
lie  tarried,  iov  it  came  into  his  heart  that  he  might  in 
some  way  torment  and  tease  them.  But  verily  he  had 
to  deal  with  those  who  were  not  nmeh  more  vii'tuous 
than  himself,  and  quite  as  cunning,  for  what  with  trav- 

^  In  the  Micniac  it  is  the  Badger,  Kcekwajoo,  who  is  the  rogue 
and  teaser  of  the  tale.  Ihit  in  the  Passania(iuoddy  versions  it  is 
the  dreaded  and  mysterious  Lox,  who  appears  to  be  a  species  of 
Lynx  or  Wolverine.  The  Lox  is  said,  by  trustworthy  white  trav- 
elers as  well  as  Indians,  to  follow  hunting  parties  for  wei'ks,  in- 
spired apparently  only  by  an  inerediljle  mania  for  misehicf,  nuu'h 
like  that  of  a  monkey  or  a  revengeful  savage,  biit  guided  l)y  re- 
markable hitelligence.  lie  will  find  his  way  into  a  eamp  and 
destroy  every  object  made  by  the  hand  of  man  witli  a  thoroiigh- 
ness  akin  to  genius,  and  what  he  camiot  destroy  lie  will  carry  to 
a  great  distance  and  carefully  conceal.  As  his  ferocity  is  ecpial 
to  his  craftiness,  he  is  very  appropriately  termed  the  Indian 
Devil. 


150  THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

eling  from  tlie  earth  to  the  heavens  and  changing  hus- 
bands, these  fair  minevers  were  learning  wisdom  rap- 
idly. So  the  elder  sister,  who  had  not  the  least  idea  of 
keeping  her  promise  unless  it  suited  her  fancy,  played 
a  trick,  and  that  (puekly  anon.  For  she  at  once  took 
off  her  hair-string  ^  and  tied  it  into  a  few  less  than  a 
hundred  knots  among  the  twigs  of  the  trees,  tangling 
it  so  that  you  would  have  deemed  it  a  week's  work 
before  a  man  could  loosen  it  again  without  injury. 

Now  Master  Lox,  having  taken  down  the  younger 
sister  with  all  the  politeness  in  the  world,  came  for  the 
otlier,  and  aided  her  also  to  descend.  And  when  on 
the  ground  she  indeed  said,  "  WUhc-oon^'''  "I  thank 
you"  (P.),  but  begged  him  to  go  u})  the  tree  again  and 
bring  down  a  great  treasure  whi(;h  she  hiid  left  there, 
her  hair-string :  beseeching  him  for  all  their  lives  not 
to  break  or  injure  it  in  any  way,  but  to  most  care- 
fully untie  every  knot,  for  tlms  doing  it  would  bring 
untold  felicity  on  tlicm  all :  and  that  they,  the  AVeasels, 
would  meantime  build  a  beautiful  bridal  bower,  or  a 
wigwam,  and  that  so  furnished  as  he  had  never  seen 
the  like  before,  —  in  which  verily  they  kept  then'  word. 

For  they  speedily  built  the  wigwam,  but  tlie  furni- 
ture thereof  was  of  this  rare  kind.  The  Weasels  had, 
it  seems,  certain  sworn  friends,  —  for  birds  of  a  feather 

1  The  Ilair-Striiif)^,  Sar/r/alohce  (M.),  occurs  very  often  in  Indian 
legends,  g^enerally  as  p-ifted  with  niao-ic.  Tlio  Indian  women  al- 
lowed tlieir  hair  to  g-row  lonji;',  tlicn  doiihh'd  it  upon  tlie  hack  of 
the  head,  often  niakinji^  additions  of  sonu'tliino;'  to  enlarge  the 
roll.     It  was  tiu'ii  houiul  in  a  huncli  witli  the  strinir. 


THE  MERRY  TALES  OF  LOX.  151 

flock  together,  —  iiiul  these  were  not  far  to  seek,  as  they 
were  the  Thorns,  i>urrs,  and  Briers  of  all  kinds,  Hor- 
nets and  other  winged  and  and  stinged  insects,  besides 
the  Ants.  And  they  were,  moreover,  intimate  with 
all  the  sliarp-edged  Flints  in  the  land,  which  was  a 
goodly  company.  So  when  the  bower  was  built  it  had 
therein  a  hornet's  nest  for  a  bridal  bed,  thorns  for  a 
cari)et,  flints  for  a  floor,  and  an  ant's  nest  for  a  seat, 
which  for  a  Ixare-footed  and  bare-breeched  Indian  is 
indeed  a  sore  essay.  Now  it  had  taken  ^Master  Lox 
the  entire  day  to  untie  the  hnir-string,  so  when  ho 
came  down  it  was  dark,  and  he  was  glad  when  he 
saw  the  hut  and  thought  of  resting  therein. 

But,  as  he  entered,  lie  ran  among  the  Thorns,  which 
pierced  his  nose,  and  Flints,  which  cut  his  feet,  so  that 
he  roared  aloud.  Then  he  heard  a  voice,  wliich  seemed 
to  be  that  of  the  younger  Miss  Weasel,  crying  "  JVames- 
cole  "  (M.),  "  Go  to  my  sister,  yonder !  "  So  he  went, 
and  trod  in  an  ant-hill,  and  this  was  worse  than  the 
Briers.  And  then  he  heard  another  voice  on  that  side 
wliich  cried,  laughing,  "  ISfhwech-hale!  "  (M.),  "  Go 
to  my  sister,  who  is  younger  than  I."  And  j)lunging 
furiously  through  the  darkness,  he  fell  on  the  hornet's 
nest ;  and  verily  the  last  state  of  that  Indian  was  worst 
of  all.  Thus,  seeing  himself  mocked,  he  became  furi- 
ous ;  so  that  he  who  has  by  nature  the  very  worst  tem- 
per of  all  beasts  or  men  was  never  so  angry  before,  and, 
seeking  the  tracks  of  the  Weasels,  he  pursued  them  as 
they  fled  in  the  night  and  through  the  thick  forest. 

Now  it  came  to  pass  that  by  daybreak  the  two  girls. 


1.02  THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

even  the  Misses  AVeasel,  had  come  to  a  broad  river 
which  they  coiUd  not  cross.  But  in  the  edge  of  the 
water  stood  a  large  Crane,  motionless,  or  the  2\iiii-(jv'n- 
llg-unach.,  who  was  the  fezTynian.  Now  truly  this  is 
esteemed  to  be  the  least  beautiful  of  all  the  birds,  for 
which  cause  he  is  greedy  of  good  words  and  fondest 
of  flattery.  And  of  all  beings  there  were  none  who 
had  more  bear's  oil  ready  to  anoint  every  one's  hair 
with  —  that  is  to  say,  more  compliments  ready  for 
everybody — than  the  Weasels.  So,  seeing  the  Crane, 
they  sang :  — 

"  Wa  wela  quis  kip  pat  kascpi', 
Wa  wela  quis  kip  pat  kasqu'.  "    (P.) 

The  Crane  has  a  very  beautiful  long  neck, 
The  Crane  has  a  very  beautiful  long  neck. 

This  charmed  the  old  ferryman  very  much,  and  when 
they  said,  "  Please,  grandfather,  hurry  along,"  he  came 
quickly.  Seeing  this,  they  began  to  chant  in  chorus, 
sweetly  as  the  Seven  Stars  themselves  :  — 

"  Wa  wela  quig  nat  kasqu', 

Wa  wela  quig  nut  kasqu'."  (P.) 

The  Crane  has  very  beautiful  long  legs, 
The  Crane  has  very  beautiful  long  legs. 

Hearing  this,  the  good  Crane  wanted  more ;  ^o 
when  they  asked  him  to  give  them  a  lift  across,  he 
answered  slowly  that  to  do  so  he  must  be  well  paid, 
but  that  good  praise  would  answer  as  well.  Now 
they  who   had   abundance  of   this   and  to  spare  for 


THE  MERRY  TALES   OF  LOX.  153 

everybody  wore  these  very  j^irl.s.  "  IIiivo  I  not  a 
beautiful  form  ?  "  he  iu(niire(l  ;  and  they  botli  cried 
aloud,  "•  Oil,  uncle,  it  is  indeed  beautiful  I  "  "  And 
my  feathers  ?  "  '^  W\^  iHtjeakopvliU^''  (M.),  "beauti- 
ful and  straight  feathers  indeed  !  "  "  And  have  1  not 
a  charmini*-  long,  straight  neck  ?  "  ''  Truly  our  uncle 
has  it  straight  and  long."  "  And  will  yt;  not  acknowl- 
edge, oh,  maidens,  that  my  legs  are  Ihie?"  "Fine! 
oil,  uncle,  they  are  perfection.  Never  in  this  life  did 
we  see  such  legs  I  "  So  being  well  pleased,  the  Crane 
put  them  across,  and  then  the  two  little  ^^'^easels  scam- 
pered like  mice  into  the  bush. 

And  scarcely  were  they  concealed,  or  tlie  Crane 
well  again  in  his  place,  ere  Master  Lox:  a})peared. 
And  being  in  no  good  temper  he  called  to  Uncle  Crane 
to  set  him  across,  and  that  speedily.  Now  the  Crane 
had  been  made  mightily  pleased  and  proud  by  the 
winsome  words  of  the  Weasels,  and  was  but  little  in- 
clined to  be  rudely  addressed.  So  he  said  to  Lox, 
"  1  will  bear  thee  over  the  river  if  thou  wilt  bear  wit- 
ness to  my  beauty.  Arc  not  my  h\gs  straight  ? " 
"Yea"  replied  the  Lox,  "and  beautifully  painted, 
too."  Now  the  color  thereof  was  little  pleasing  to 
l)oor  Uncle  Crane.  "  Are  not  my  feathers  very  smooth 
and  fine  ?  "  "  Yea,  smooth  and  line  ;  what  a  l)ity, 
thougli,  that  they  arc  mildewed  and  dusty !  "  "And 
my  straight  neck  ?  "  "  Yes,  wonderfully  straight,  — 
straight  as  if/i/.s,"  said  Lox  to  himself,  taking  up  a 
crooked  stick.     And  then  he  sang  :  — 

"Mocha  giiiskipat  kasqii', 
Media  quig  nat  kasqu'." 


154  THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

'Y\w  Crane  has  a  very  ugly  neck, 
The  Crane  has  dirty,  ugly  legs. 

"Come,  moosQ  me  (sTandfiitlicr).  liiiiTy  up  I 

Oil,  the  Cnuie  has  a  very  ugly  neek, 
The  Crane  has  dirty,  ugly  legs, 

I  wish  you  to  be  quick,  mooi<o  mc.  Hurry  up,  I 
say ! "  > 

Ami  Jill  of  this  ill-temper  and  insincerity  was  (lee])ly 
and  inwanlly  detected  by  Uncle  Crane,  but  he  said 
not  a  word,  and  only  meekly  bent  him  down  to  take 
the  traveler  on  his  back.  Ihit  when  in  the  stream, 
and  where  it  was  deepest  and  most  dangerous,  ho 
gave  himself  a  shake,  and  in  another  instant  Lox  was 
whirling  I'ound  and  roimd  like  a  eliip  in  the  rapids. 
And  yet  a  little  time  he  was  dashed  against  the  rocks, 
and  tlien  anon  was  thrown  In'gh  and  dry  on  the  shore, 
but  dead  as  a  seven-year-old  cedar  cone. 

Now  tiie  Lox  is  a  great  magician  at  certain  times 
and    seasons,    albeit   his   power  fails  him  at  others.^ 

^  This  dialogue,  including  the  songs,  is  from  a  very  curious 
Passaniaciuoddy  version  of  the  tale,  sent  to  nie  by  Louis  IVlitcliell. 
As  in  all  HUt:li  oases,  there  is  far  more  humor  in  the  Passania- 
quoddy  narratives  than  in  the  INIiemac  or  Eskimo. 

^  From  this  point  of  the  legend  onward  there  is  an  inextricahle 
confusion  as  regards  the  four  different  versions.  ^Vhile  the  hero 
is  decidedly  a  Badger  in  the  IMicmac,  I  regard  the  great  ferocity, 
craft,  and  above  all  the  vitality  which  he  displays  as  far  more 
characteristic  of  the  Lox  or  Wolverine  of  the  l'assama(pu)ddy. 
What  is  almost  decisively  in  favor  of  the  latter  theory  is  that 
in  all  tlie  stories,  desi»ite  his  craft  and  power,  he  is  always  get- 
ting himself  into  trouble  through  them.  This  is  eminently  char- 
acteristic of  the  Lox,  umch  less  so  of  the  Badger. 


THE  MERRY  TALES  OF  LOX.  155 

And  he  h  one  of  tlio.so  wlio  rise  from  the  (lead.  Now 
it  came  to  pass  that  some  days  after  two  boys  of  the 
Kwedeeh  or  Mohawk  race  found  tlie  Lox  lying  dead 
on  a  rock  in  the  sunshine,  and  the  worms  were  erawl- 
ing  from  him.  But  when  they  touehed  him  he  arose 
as  if  from  sleep,  and  stood  before  them  as  a  proud  and 
fierce  warrior.  lUit  he  was  scarce  alive  ere  he  sought 
to  do  them  who  had  roused  him  to  life  a  mischief  ;  for 
having  noted  that  they  had  fine  bows,  he  got  them  into 
his  hands,  and  broke  them,  yet  all  as  if  he  meant  it 
not.^  And  then  by  magie  making  a  sound  as  of  many 
children  at  play,  afar  off  across  the  next  point  of 
huid  by  the  river,  he  bade  them  run  and  join  the  pleas- 
ant games.  And  when  he  had  got  them  a  sj)aee  on- 
ward, lo,  the  sound  seemed  ever  farther  on,  mingled 
with  the  murmur  of  the  stream  ;  and  so  they  went 
without  him,  seeking  it,  and  yet  it  wandered  ever  far 
away. 

Now  he  had  learned  from  the  boys  that  they  were 
of  a  CuUo  family  ;  and  the  Culloos  are  certain  mon- 
strous birds,  exceeding  fierce.  But  INIaster  Lox,  having 
seen  in  the  cabin  plenty  of  fine  meat,  desired  greatly 
to  become  one  of  the  familv,  and  having  been  much 
about  in  life  knew  something  of  the  ways  of  every 
one.     So  putting  on   the  Culloo   styh^,   h(>,   seeing  a 

^  In  the  Passamaquoddy  vcM'sion  of  this  t;ih',  wIk  n  Lux  Is  thus 
tlismt'inbcred,  the  ants,  pityuig  him,  hrincf  his  scatti  red  nicnihors 
tojrctlicr.  As  soon  as  he  reeovers,  the  Wolverine,  witli  charac- 
tcristie  ingratitude,  amuses  hunself  by  trampling  his  benei'aetors 
to  death  beneath  his  feet. 


156  THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

babe,  began  to  sing  with  the  most  natural  air  in  tho 
world  a  CuUoo  nursery-song  :  — 

"  Agoo  <je  abcol, 
.  Wetkusanabeol."  * 

A  seal- skin  sti'ap, 
A  shouldnr-strap. 

Now  It  costs  very  little  to  fall  into  the  humor  of  a 
man  ;  but  this  the  woman  would  not  do,  and  told  him 
plainly  that  he  could  not  deceive  her.  On  hearing 
which  Master  Lox,  in  a  great  rage,  seized  his  toma- 
hawk and  slew  her.  Then  seeing  a  kettle  boiling  on 
the  fire,  he  cut  off  her  head  and  put  it  into  the  i)ot, 
hiding  the  body.  And  this  was  a  merry  jest  after  his 
own  heart,  so  that  it  greatly  solaced  him.  But  after 
a  time,  the  two  boys,  returning,  missed  their  mother, 
and  looking  into  the  kettle,  found  her  head.  Then 
they  knew  well  who  had  done  this.  And,  being  fear- 
less, they  pursued  him,  but  having  no  bows  they  could 
do  him  no  harm  ;  however,  they  took  from  him  his 
gloves,  and  with  these  they  returned. 

And  anon  there  came  also  an  uncle  of  the  boys,  or 
Kah-hah-goos  (P.),  the  Crow.  So  he  gave  chase  to 
Lox,  yet  aU  that  he  could  do  was  to  snatch  away  his 
cap  as  he  ran.  Yet  without  shame  he  cried  aloud, 
"  Well,  my  head  was  getting  warm,  and  now  I  am 
cooler.     Thank  you  !  " 

Then  came  another  relative,  ICitpoo^  the  Eagle  (M.). 
And  he,  pursuing  Lox,  took  from  him  his  coat.     Yet 

^  Micmac. 


^>^^^^^s:^'^oc^^^^^^!v^^c^5^^^;^^^^ 


'.'■  ■  '•■'/•'■V('^--'-'^ 


vT^ 


LOX    CARRIED    OFF   BY   CULLOO. 


THE  MERRY  TALES   OF  LOX,  107 

all  iiiijil)ashe<l  he  replied,  "•  Tliiuiks  unto  you  also;  for 
I  was  just  wishing  that  iny  younger  brother  were  hero 
to  carry  my  coat  for  me."  liut  he  wlio  now  arrived, 
hearin;^  of  the  deadly  deed,  was  tiie  great  Culloo  him- 
self, the  most  terrible  of  all  created  creatures,  and  he, 
pursuing  Lox,  caught  him  iq),  and  carrying  him  in  his 
claws,  even  to  the  summit  of  the  sky  itself,  let  liiin 
drop,  and  he  was  a  whole  day  in  falling  ;  even  from  the 
first  dawn  unto  sunset  he  went  down  ere  he  touched 
the  earth,  liut  before  he  was  let  di-op,  and  wlien  on 
high,  he  burst  into  a  mocking  song  on  what  he  saw, 
and  the  words  were  us  follows  :  — 

•'  Kiimiit  kciiovek, 
Telap  tuiuun  ek, 
Stugat'li'  koseniigasikel, 

Yog  wa  t'gon* 

Yog  wa  egciio 
Telap  tiiincn  ck 
Kiuimt  keu  ooik' 
Stiimi  'mkudonioos  koon." 


■o' 


Our  counti-y  all  lost 

Seems  clearly  to  us 

As  though  it  wen;  all  spread  with  boughs. 

Hi'igh  ho,  hay  hum  ! 

Ileigh  ho,  hay  hum  ! 
Our  country  now  lost 
Seems  now  unto  us 
To  be  blue  like  the  clear  blue  sky. 

Hum,  hum  —  tol  de  rol  ! 

And  when  let  fall,  this  graceless  jackanapes  in  no- 
wise ceased  his  ribaldry  ;  for  while  pretending  to  flap 


158  THE  ALGOmWlN  LEGENDS, 

witli  his  arms  as  if  they  were  wings,  lie  imitated  with 
his  mouth,  mockingly,  the  HHf<h  /  wish/  of  the  wide 
wings  of  the  Culloo.  Yet  just  ere  he  touched  the 
earth  lie  uttered  one  little  nuigic  spidl,  "  Oh,  spare  my 
poor  backbone  !  "  And  with  that  :dl  the  trouble  of 
all  the  birds  went  for  nothing.  Truly  he  was  mashed 
to  a  batter,  and  his  blood  and  brains  liew  in  every 
direction,  like  rasj)berry  pudding  ;  but  among  the  re- 
mains his  backbone  lay  whole,  and  this  was  his  life. 

And  in  a  few  days  after  his  younger  brother  came 
by,  who,  seeing  the  dire  mess,  exclaimed,  "  I  ley,  what 
is  all  this  ?  "  ^  AVhereui)on  a  Voice  came  from  the 
bone,  crying,  "  NkIoo(/ooh,  ha  ho  I  "  "  llo,  my  leg, 
come  hither  I  "  and  a  leg  came  unto  the  spine.  Then 
the  Voice  cried,  "  N'petunugum^  ha  ho  !  "  "  IIo,  my 
arm,  come  hither !  "  And  when  the  last  fragment 
had  come  he  arose,  the  same  indomitable  Lox  as  ever, 
even  the  Indian  Devil,  or  Wolverine,  who  never  saj's 
Die,  and  whom  nothing  can  kill,  and  who  is  hard  to 
put  away. 

Now  the  two  brothers  went  on  till  they  came  to  the 
top  of  a  high  mountain,  where  there  lay  a  very  great 
round  rock,  or  a  mighty  boulder.  And,  being  full  of 
fun,  they  turned  it  over  with  great  sticks,  saying  to  it, 

*  The  dead  body  of  a  sorcerer  must  lie  until  addressed  by 
some  luimau  being.  Then  it  revives.  This  i.s  sugf^estive  of  vam- 
pirism, which  is  well  known  to  the  Indians.  There  is  some- 
thing strangely  ghastly  in  the  idea  of  the  Voice  calling  separately 
to  each  dead  limb  to  come  to  it.  The  Culloo  is  an  emblem  of 
the  cloud,  and  Lox  let  fall  from  one  probably  signified  fire,  or 
the  lightning. 


THE  MERRY  TALES  OF  LOX.  159 

*'  Now  lot  us  run  a  race  I  "  Then  it  rolled  (lowiililll 
till  it  stopped  at  the  foot,  they  rushing  along  by  it  all 
the  time.  And  wluju  it  rested  they  jeered  it,  and 
bade  it  race  with  them  again,  when  it  so  listed. 

And  truly  they  had  not  long  to  wait,  for  soon  after, 
as  they  sat  cooking  their  fooil,  they  heard  a  mighty 
connnotion  as  of  something  coming  with  dreadful  speed 
throuLih  the  forest.  And  lo  I  it  was  the  stone  in  dire 
wratli,  which,  having  rested  a  little  while,  came  rush- 
ing through  the  forest,  crashing  the  mighty  trees  like 
grass,  with  a  roar  like  thunder,  leaving  a  smooth  kkuI 
behind  it  in  the  roughest  wilderness.  Up  and  after 
the  sorcerers  flew  the  stone,  and  the  younger  slipped 
asl^lo  like  a  snake,  but  the  elder  had  scarcely  time  to 
utter  his  magic  charm,  "  Noo-fjoon  ooskudcskuch  !  " 
"  Let  my  backbone  remain  uninjured  !  "  ore  the  awful 
rock  rolled  down  upon  him,  crushing  his  bones  and 
mashing  his  flesh.  Yet  the  spine  was  unhurt ;  it  re- 
mained sound  as  ever. 

And  the  stone  went  on  and  over  on,  till  the  sound 
of  its  roar  died  away  in  the  breeze  and  afar  in  the 
wilderness. 

Then  the  younger  brother  turned  to  the  Backbone 
and  said,  "  Cagooee  wrjlsiuook'  tumun  ?  "  (M.)  "  Why 
are  you  lying  there  ?  "  And  hearing  this  charm  the 
Bone  called  aloud,  "  Xtenin  ha  ho  !  "  "  My  body,  ho  !  " 
and  ^^  JVi/loof/oon  ha  ho!  "  "  ]\Iy  leg,  ho  !  "  and  so  with 
the  rest  of  the  members  as  before,  until  he  that  was 
decomjiosed  was  now  reconi posed  ;  yes,  and  comi)osed 
perfectly.     And  then  he  that  was  dead,  but  was  now 


IGO  THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

alive,  arose,  and  said  an  one  awakin;^-,  "  What  have  I 
been  doiiij:^  ?  "     So  liis  brother  told  him  all. 

'Jht'ii  he  was  "greatly  angered,  and  when  the  Wol- 
verine is  an;;i'y  it  is  not  a  little.  ^..nd  he  sjiid  in  his 
wi'ath,  ''  Shall  1  that  am  the  devil  of  the  woods  him- 
self be  slain  by  birds  and  stones,  and  not  be  re- 
venged?" So  they  went  onwards  through  the  W(n)ds 
till  they  found  the  Great  Uock  :  they  followed  in  the 
path  of  the  broken  trees ;  even  by  the  trees  did  they 
traek  it.  Whieh  having  found,  they  built  a  fire  around 
it ;  with  great  stones  for  luunmers  they  broke  it,  and 
ever  more  and  still  smaller,  till  it  was  all  mere  dust, 
for  their  souls  were  sore  for  revenjje. 

AVlien  lo,  a  great  wonder !  For  the  Spirit  of  the 
Old  lioek,  even  that  whieh  was  itself,  turned  all  the 
dust  to  black  flies,  into  the  stinging  and  evil  things 
which  drive  men  and  beasts  mad,  so  that  its  hatred 
and  spite  might  be  carried  out  on  all  living  creatures 
unto  the  end  of  time. 

And  having  had  their  ill-will  of  the  Rock  and  seen 
it  become  Flies,  the  two  went  through  the  forest,  and 
so  on  till  they  came  to  a  village  of  good,  honest  folk  ; 
and  knowing  what  manner  of  men  they  were,  Lox  re- 
solved to  forthwith  ])lay  them  an  evil  trick,  for  in  all 
life  there  wa:  nothing  half  so  dear  to  him  as  to  make 
mischief,  the  worse  the  better. 

And  this  time  it  came  into  his  head  that  it  would 
be  a  fine  piece  of  wit  to  go  into  the  town  as  a  gay  girl 
and  get  married,  and  see  what  woidd  come  of  it,  trust- 
ing to  luck  to  fashion  a  sad  fool  out  of  somebody.     So 


THE  MERRY   TALES   OF  LOX.  101 

having  made  himself  into  a  delicate  young  beauty, 
riehly  attired,  he  entered  the  i)lacc  ;  and  truly  tiie  town 
was  soon  agog  over  the  new  guests.  And  the  young 
chief  of  ho  tribe,  wanting  her,  won  her  without  waste 
of  time.  Truly  there  lieth  herein  some  mystery.  I 
know  not  what,  only  this  1  know  :  that  there  are  in  all 
towns  certain  folk  who,  by  means  of  magic  or  med- 
dling, always  find  out  everything  about  every])ody,  and 
then  tittle-tattle  thereof.  Now,  albeit  Lox  had  ut- 
terly abjured  all  the  sinfulness  of  manhood,  and  had 
made  a  new  departure  in  an  utterly  wew  direction,  say- 
ing not  a  word  thereof  to  any  one,  yet  in  a  brief  meas- 
ure of  time,  one  here,  another  there.  Jack  in  a  corner 
and  Jane  by  the  bush,  began  to  whisper  of  a  strange 
thing,  and  hint  that  all  was  not  as  it  should  be,  and, 
whatever  the  chief  might  think,  that  in  their  minds 
matters  were  going  wrong  in  his  wigwam. 

Now  Lox,  knowing  all  this  thread  as  vsoon  as  it  was 
sjjun,  began  to  think  it  high  time  to  show  his  hand 
in  the  game.  And  what  was  the  amazement  of  all 
the  town  to  hear,  one  fine  evening,  that  the  chief's 
wife  would  soon  be  a  mother.  And  when  the  time 
came  Dame  Lox  informed  her  husband  that,  accord- 
ing to  the  custom  of  her  people,  she  must  be  left  ut- 
terly alone  till  he  was  a  father  and  the  babe  bom. 
And  when  in  due  time  the  cry  of  a  small  child  was 
heard  in  the  lodge  the  women  waiting  ran  in,  and  re- 
ceived from  the  mother  the  little  one,  abundantly 
rolled  in  many  wrai)pers,  which  they  took  to  the  chief. 

But  what  was  his  amazement,  when  having  unrolled 
11 


102  THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

the  pjuikage,  he  found  under  one  skin  after  another, 
tied  u|)  hard,  yet  another  sewed  up,  and  yet  a<^ain,  as 
the  inmost  kernel  of  this  nut,  the  little  withered,  wiz- 
ened, dead,  and  dried  shrivehnent  of  an  unhorn  mooso 
calf.  Which  pleased  the  ehief  so  nuieh  that,  dashing 
Master  Moose  into  the  fire,  he  seized  his  tonialiawk 
and  ran  to  his  lodge  to  make  his  fii'st  morning  call  on 
the  mother. 

But  Master  Lox  was  now  a  man  again,  and  expect- 
ing this  call,  and  not  wishing  to  see  visitors,  had  with 
his  brother  fled  to  the  woods,  and  that  raj)idly.  And 
in  the  rush  he  came  to  a  river,  and,  seeing  a  very  high 
waterfall,  thought  of  a  rare  device  whereby  he  might 
elude  pursuit.  For  he  with  his  brother  soon  built  a 
dam  across  the  top  with  trees  and  earth,  so  that  but 
little  water  went  below.  And  lying  in  a  cave,  con- 
cealed witli  care,  he  Imitated  the  hoo-oo-oo  of  a  fall- 
ing stream  with  tpiaint  and  wondrous  skill.  And 
there  he  lav,  and  no  man  wist  thereof. 

But  verily  the  wicked  one  is  caught  in  his  own 
snare,  and  even  so  it  befell  Master  Lox.  For  as  he 
hid,  the  water  above,  having  gathered  to  a  great  lake, 
burst  the  dam,  so  that  it  all  came  down  upon  him  at 
once  and  drowned  him ;  nor  was  there  any  great 
weeping  for  him  that  ever  I  heard  of.  So  here  he 
passes  out  of  this  story,  and  does  not  come  into  it 
again.  But  whether  he  went  for  good  and  all  out  of 
this  life  is  doubtful,  since  I  find  him  living  again  in 
so  many  rare,  strange  histories  that  it  has  become  a 
proverb  that  Lox  never  dies. 


Tin:  MEniiY  T.\ij:s  of  i.ax.  103 

Now  the  tale  returns  iu  tho  two  little  Weasels,  or 
Enniiies,  or  Water-Maids,  }H»or  souls,  who  luul  suelj  a 
liaid  life  !  Aiul  it  hapi^'Uiil  tiiat,  Heeiiig  from  Master 
Lox,  they  eaiue  at  evening  to  a  deserted  village,  and 
entered  a  wigwam  to  pass  tiie  night.  But  tlie  ehler, 
being  the  wiser,  and  somewhat  of  a  witeh  in  the  bud, 
mistrusted  the  phiee,  deeming  it  not  so  empty  as  it 
seemed.  And  beholding  by  the  door,  lying  on  tho 
ground,  the  Neekbone  of  a  man  or  some  other  animal, 
she  warned  her  sister  that  slu;  should'  in  nowise  offend 
it  or  treat  it  ligiitly,  to  which  the  younger  rei)lied  by 
giving  it  a  kiek  which  sent  it  Hying,  and  by  other- 
wise treating  it  with  scorn  and  disdain. 

Then  they  laid  them  down  to  sleej) ;  but  before  their 
slumber  came  tliey  heard  a  doleful,  bitter  voice  chant- 
ing aloud  and  shouting,  and  it  was  CJi<nnuch  hey 
V'cdi,  or  the  Neekbone,  bewailing  the  scorn  tliat  had 
been  })ut  u})on  him,  and  reviling  them  with  all  manner 
of  curses.  Then  tlio  elder  said,  "  Tliere,  truly,  I  said 
it.  I  knew  you  would  be  (mr  death  if  you  did  not 
mind  me  :  "  it  being  in  all  cases  an  esteemed  solace 
for  every  woman  and  most  men  to  sa}',  "  I  told  you 
so  !  "  But  the  younger,  being  well-nigh  frightened  to 
a  corpse,  in  a  soft  whisper  im})lored  the  elder  to  let 
her  hide  herself  in  her  roll  of  hair,^  wliicli  the  Voice, 
mocking  her,  re])oated ;  adding  thereto  all  the  reviling 
and  railing  that  Mitehe-hant,  the  devil,  himself  ever 
yet  invented,  and  abusing  her  so  for  her  past  life,  and 

^  That  is,  tho  elder  should  retain  the  Imiiian  form,  and  tho 
younger  become  a  weasel. 


1G4  THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS, 

cxhortinj^  lier  ho  for  all  tlio  sins,  slips,  aiul  slapH 
tlu'itsin  (of  which  there  wito  many),  tluit  evuii  the 
im[).A..oent  little  Weasel  repented  and  \ve])t  bitterly, 
llowbeit  no  fnrthcr  harm  came  to  them  beyond  this, 
80  that  the  next  mornin*^  tiiey  went  their  way  in 
peaec  ;  and  I  warrant  you  Master  Neckbonc  got  no 
kicks  tliat  day  from  them,  departing.' 

Then,  coming  to  a  river,  they  saw  on  the  other  side 
a  handsome  young  man  holding  a  bow,  and  to  him 
they  called,  making  their  usual  ott'er  to  become  his 
wives,  and  all  for  no  gi'eater  thing  than  to  carry  them 
over  the  ferry.  And  this  man's  name  was  See-witch,'^ 
and  to  please  them  he  did  indeed  pass  them  over  in 
his  canoe :  but  as  for  taking  tliem  home,  ho  said  that 
he  had  housekeepers  in  store,  and  as  many  as  he 
needed  just  tlien,  and  that  of  a  kind  wlio  kept  him 
very  busy.     So  they  went  their  way  onwards. 

And  coming  anon  to  the  great  sea,  they  beheld  yet 
another  canoe  with  two  men  therein,  and  these  were 
Kwe-moo,  tlie  Loon,  and  Mahgwis,  the  Scapegrace. 
And  embarking  with  them.  Loon  soon  bcigan  to  ad- 
mire the  girls  greatly.  And  saying  many  sweet  things, 
he  told  them  that  he  dwelt  in  the  Wigem  territory,  or 
in  the  land  of   the  Owealkesk,^  of  which  he  himself 

^  This  inciilont  of  the  Neekbone  is  very  much  like  the  com- 
mon nursery  tale  of  Teeny  Tiny,  in  which  an  old  woman  takes 
home  a  Iniman  bone  and  puts  it  iii  the  cupboard.  It  torments  her 
all  night  by  its  cries. 

^  A  kind  of  small  sea-duck. 

*  A  very  beautiful  species  of  sea-duck. 


THE  MKIIIIY  TALKS  OF  LOX.  106 

was  ono.  Hilt  tho  Mahjj^wis  wliispored  to  tlicm  aside 
tliut  they  slioiild  put  little  trust  in  wliat  he  tulil  tlieui, 
f(»i'  Loou  was  a  «;ivat  liar.  Now  when  they  came  to 
the  land  of  tiio  Owoalkesk,  they  were  ania/ed  at  tho 
beauty  of  the  jteople,  and  saw  that  all  in  that  laud 
was  lovely,  nor  did  they  tlieniselves  seem  less  nuirvel- 
ously  fair  to  the  men  therein.  Indeed,  tlio  \)oov  little 
Weasels  be^f'an  to  see  tlie  end  of  their  sorrows,  for, 
being  water- fairies,  these  sea-birds  were  nij^h  akin  to 
them.  And  there  was  a  great  feast,  a  great  dance, 
and  groat  games  held  in  honor  of  tlieir  arrival,  and 
the  two  finest  young  Sea-l)iu'k  men,  utterly  unheeding 
the  old  Loon,  wlio  believed  intU-ed  that  they  were  his 
own  wives,  carried  them  off,  and  notliing  loath  wedded 
them. 

And  it  was  in  this  wise.  There  was  a  canoe-race, 
and  Kwe-moo,  being  bitterly  angry  that  he  was  held 
of  so  little  account  in  the  Sea-l.hick  land,  went  forth 
with  the  rest,  and,  j)addling  far  outside,  ui)set  his 
canoe,  and  making  as  if  ho  were  drowning  called  to 
the  Weasels  to  come  and  save  him.  liut  tlie  Sea- 
Ducks  laughed,  and  said,  "  Let  him  alone.  Truly  he 
will  never  drown.  We  know  him."  And  the  race 
ended  they  went  ashore  in  peace.^ 

And  that  night  they  danced  late,  and  the  Weasels, 

^  Hero  the  ^ricmae  narrative  Piuls.  The  rest  is  as  it  was  given 
to  me  hy  Xoel  .Fosophs,  or  Chi  (/nfch  ffok,  the  Raven,  a  Passa- 
iii:i<in()(l(ly.  It  wouhl  not  be  a  compk'te  Indian  tale  if  a  man 
liHving  recciveil  a  slight  ov  injury  did  not  take  a  bloody  revenge 
tor  it. 


10()  rilE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

boing  bottor  pleased  with  the  two  liaiulsomc  Sea- 
Diieks  than  with  Loon,  forthwitli  divorced  themselves 
out  of  hand,  and  at  once  married  them,  going  to  where 
their  eanoe  lay,  to  pass  tlie  bridal  night.  Now  Loon 
had  not  gone  to  the  <lanee,  but  sat  at  homo  nursing 
his  vengeance  till  he  was  well-nigh  mad.  And  as  the 
Weasels  did  not  return,  he  went  forth  and  sought 
them  ;  anil  this  ho  did  so  earefidly  that  at  last  ho 
found  all  four  by  the  sea,  sound  asleep.  Whereupon 
he,  with  his  knife,  slew  the  young  men,  and  being  in 
great  fear  of  their  friends  took  his  canoe  and  went 
down  the  river  to  kill  a  deer.  I5ut  not  daring  to 
return,  and  being  mad  for  loss  of  the  Weasels,  and 
fearing  to  fall  into  the  hands  of  the  enemy,  he  in  de- 
s})air  took  his  knife  and  killed  liimself. 

Yet  the  Weasels,  who  liad  seen  llici  deed  done,  did 
not  betray  him,  for  there  was  at  least  so  nuicli  truth 
left  in  them.  And  they  lived  with  the  Sea-Ducks, 
and  1  doubt  me  not  went  on  marrying  and  mischief- 
making  after  their  wont  even  unto  the  end  of  their 
days.  And  their  kind  are  not  dead  as  yet  in  any 
land. 

This  is  a  fair  specimen  of  many  Indian  legends. 
So  nuieh  of  it  as  is  Micmac  was  told  to  ]Mr.  Hand  by 
a  highly  intt'lligent  Indian,  named  JJcnjamin  Brooks, 
who  was  certain  that  the  story  Nvas  of  great  anticpiity. 
As  I  at  first  heard  it,  it  was  limited  to  the  adventure 
with  the  Stars,  but  I  was  told  that  this  formed  only  a 
part  of  an  extremely  long  narrative.     It  consists,  in 


THE  MERRY  TALES   OF  LOX.  107 

fact,  of  diiTerciit  ])arts  of  otlicr  tales  connuctcd,  and  1 
doubt  not  that  tlieru  is  nuich  more  of  it.  It  cannot 
osoaj)e  tlio  reader  versed  in  fairy-lore  that  tlie  incident 
of  the  water-maiden  ca])tured  by  her  clothes  is  com- 
mon 1')  all  Kuro[)ean  nations,  but  that  it  is  especially 
Norse  ;  while  the  adventures  of  the  Wolverine,  and 
indeed  his  whole  character,  are  strangely  suggestive  of 
Loki,  the  S[)irit  of  mere  Mischief,  wlio  beconu'S  evil. 
The  fact  that  botli  Loki  and  Lox  end  their  earthly 
career  at  a  wat(!rfall  is  very  curious.  Tiie  two  also 
become,  in  wizard  fashion,  women  at  will.  Ihit  it  is 
chiefly  in  the  extreme  and  wanton  devilislniess  of  their 
tricks  that  tlu>y  are  alike.  Many  other  resemblances 
will  suggest  themselves  to  those  who  know  tlie  Kddas. 
In  the  Passamaquoddy  version  of  this  tale,  it  is  8eo- 
witch,  and  not  the  Loon,  who  l>lays  the  part  of  the 
jealous  husband  at  tlu*  end.  The  career  of  the  AVea- 
seli;  sccniH  to  set  forth  the  adventures  of  a  couple  of 
Indian  JJecky  Sharps,  very  much  in  the  spirit  of  an 
Indian  Thaclcoray.  The;  innnorality  of  tliese  damsels, 
the  sponging  of  Marten,  the  deviltry  of  Lox,  the  ser- 
vile follies  and  ferocious  vindict'  .'cness  of  the  Loon, 
all  seem  to  impress  the  composer  of  tlie  tale  as  sonumy 
bubbles  rising  and  falling  on  the  sea  of  life,  only 
remarkable  for  the  sun-gleam  of  humor  which  they 
reflect.  Outside  these  tales  I  know  of  nothing  which 
so  resembles  the  inner  spirit  of  Aristo])hanes,  Kabelais, 
and  Shakespeare.  I  do  not  say  that  the  genius  of 
these  great  masters  is  in  them,  but  their  manner  of 
seeing  humor  and  \vickedness  combined.     The  cause 


108      THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

of  this  lies  in  the  cultivated  stoicism  with  whicli  every 
Indian  trains  himself  to  regard  life.  The  inevitable 
result  of  such  culture  is  always  m  some  way  a  kind  of 
huuKU',  either  grim  or  gay. 

A  re-perusal  of  the  Eddas  has  impressed  me  with 
the  remarkable  resemblance  of  Lox,  the  Wolverine,  to 
Loki.  The  story  begins  with  the  incident  of  a  bird 
maiden  caught  by  a  trick,  and  marrie<l.  This  is  dis- 
tmctly  Scandinavian.  It  is  known  in  all  lands,  but 
the  Norse  made  the  most  of  it.  Then  the  two  girls  sit 
and  choose  the  kind  of  stars  they  will  have.  In  the 
Eskimo  (Kink,  No.  8),  two  girls  sitting  on  a  beach, 
talking  in  the  same  way,  seeing  eagles'  and  whales' 
bones  by  them,  declare  that  they  would  like  to  marry, 
the  one  an  eagle,  the  other  a  whale,  and  both  get  their 
wishes.  In  the  Norse  legends  stars  are  like  human 
beings.  Lox  is  pursued  by  a  giant  bird ;  Loki  is 
chased  by  Thiassi,  the  giant,  in  eagle  plumage.  Again, 
in  the  J^dda  a  giant  eagle  drags  and  trails  Loki  over 
woods  and  mountains,  till  he  screams  for  pity.  The 
AVolverine's  race  with  a  stone  giant  also  recaUs  tlxis 
race,  the  eagle  being  really  one  of  the  JcJtuns,  who 
were  also  all  mountains  and  rocks.  The  Wolverine 
wizard  becomes  a  girl,  merely  to  make  mischief.  Loki 
took  the  form  of  a  woman  in  Fensal,  where  he 
schemed  to  kill  Balder.  This  is  certainly  a  strange 
coincidence ;  for  .as  in  the  Edda,  Loki's  becoming  a 
woman  led  to  all  the  subsequent  tragedy  and  to  liis 
own  doom,  so  iix  tlic  Indian  tale  the  very  same  thing 
caused  the  Wolverine  to  be  chased  to  the  high  water- 


THE   MERRY   TALES   OF  LOX.  169 

fall,  where,  owing  to  his  own  tricks,  he  perished,  jnst 
as  Loki  eanie  to  urief  in  Franan<xurs£ors,  the  briiiht 
and  glistening  cataract.  Ihit  the  most  remarkable 
j)oint  is  that  the  general  immoral  (character  of  the 
Lox,  ^  or  Wolverine,  is  so  much  like  that  of  Loki,  con- 
sisting of  evil  or  mischief  of  the  worst  kind,  always 
temi)ered  by  humor,  which  provokes  a  laugh.  Now 
to  find  a  similar  and  very  singidar  character  snpported 
by  several  coincidences  of  incident  is,  if  nothing  more, 
at  least  very  remarkable. 

Loki  is  fire,  and  Lox,  when  killed  in  another  tale,  is 
revived  by  heat,  lie  is  carried  off  by  the  Culloo,  or 
clond,  and  let  fall,  typifying  fire  or  lightning  coming 
from  a  cloud.  Again,  in  another  story  he  dies  for 
want  of  fire.  And  he  twice  dies  by  drowning  ;  that  is, 
the  fire  is  quenched  by  water. 

In  one  of  the  Passama(pioddy  versions  of  this  tale, 
which  is,  though  less  detailed,  far  superior  in  humor 
to  the  Micmac,  the;  Loon  is  cheated  by  his  two 
nephews,  the  Asfiooj)S^  a  specie's  of  loon,  who  stoal 
the  Weasels  from  him.  lie  revenges  himself,  not  by 
murdering,  but  by  merely  frightening  them,  lie  fills 
a  bladder  with  blood,  puts  it  under  his  shirt,  and  then 
stabs  himself.  They,  thinking  he  is  killed,  lament, 
when  he  gTandly  comes  to  life,  and  is  regarded  as  a 
great  magician. 

^  Tlio  coincidt'iuio  of  name  amounts  to  notliin<j,  ;is  Lox  is  not, 
I  l»elieve,  an  Imlian  word. 


170  THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

Of  the  Wolveriyic   and   the  Wolves,  or  how  Master  Lox 

Froze  to  Death. 

(  Passamaquocldy . ) 

Of  old  times  it  came  to  pass  that  IVIaster  Lox,  the 
1\  olverine,  or  Indian  Devil,  he  who  was  slain  many 
times  and  as  often  rose  from  the  dead,  found  him- 
self deeply  down  in  luck  ;  for  he  was  crossing  a  wide 
and  dismal  heath  in  winter-time,  being  but  poorly 
provided  in  any  way  for  travel.  The  wind  blew 
like  knives  ;  the  snow  fell ;  sleet,  frost,  hail,  and  rain 
seemed  to  come  all  together  in  bad  company,  and  still 
Lox  was  not  hai)py,  although  he  had  no  blanket  or 
fur  coat  beyond  his  own.  Yet  this  evil-minded  jolly 
companion  with  every  vice  had  one  virtue,  and  that 
was  tliat  of  all  the  beasts  of  the  forest  or  devils  in 
P^lamhiJc'  he  was  the  hardest  hearted,  toughest,  and 
most  unconquerable,  being  ever  the  first  to  fight  and 
the  last  to  give  in,  which  even  then  he  did  not,  never 
having  done  it  and  never  intending  to ;  whence  it 
happened  that  he  was  greatly  admii-ed  and  made 
much  of  by  all  the  blackguardly  beasts  of  the  back- 
woods, —  wherein  they  differed  but  little  from  many 
among  men. 

Now  as  of  all  rowdies  and  rascals  the  wolves  are 
the  worst,  we  may  well  believe  tliat  it  was  with  great 
joy  Lox  heard,  as  tlie  darkness  was  coming  on,  a 
long,  sad  howl,  far  away,  betokening  the  coming  of  a 
pack  of  these  pleasant  pcojde  ;  to  which  he  raised  his 
own  voice  in  the  wolf  tongue,  —  for  he  was  learned  in 


THE  MERRY  TALES  OF  LOX.  171 

many  Ir  ^giiages,  —  and  soon  was  surrounded  by  r.onie 
fifteen  Ox  sixteen  lupine  land-loafers,  who  danced,  roll- 
ing over,  barking  and  biting  one  another,  all  for  very 
joy  at  meeting  with  him.  And  the  elder,  he  who  was 
captain,  or  the  sogmo,'  said,  "  IV'radventurc  thou  wilt 
encamp  with  us  this  night,  for  it  is  ill  for  a  gentle- 
man to  be  alone,  where  ho  might  encounter  vulgar 
fellows."  And  Lox  thanked  him  as  if  he  were  doing 
him  a  favor,  and  accepted  the  best  of  their  dried 
meat,  and  took  the  highest  place  by  their  fire,  and 
smoked  the  chief's  choicest  tomaioc  out  of  his  best 
l)ipe,  and  all  that  with  such  vast  condescension  that 
the  wolves  grinned  with  tlclight. 

And  when  they  laid  them  down  to  sleep  he  that 
was  the  eldest,  or  the  sognio,  bade  the  younger  cover 
t\eir  guest  Lox  over  vory  carefully.  Now  the  tail 
o  the  wolf  has  broad-spreading,  sliaggy  hair,  and 
Lox,  being  sleepy,  really  thought  it  was  a  fur  blanket 
tliat  they  spread,  and  though  the  night  was  cold 
enough  to  crack  the  rocks  he  threw  the  covering  off ; 
twice  he  did  this,  and  the  chief  who  looked  after  him, 
with  all  the  rest,  admired  him  greatly  because  ho 
cared  so  little  for  the  cold  or  for  their  care. 

And  having  eaten  after  they  arose,  when  in  tho 
morning  they  would  wend  away,  the  Wolf  Cliief  said 
unto  Lox,  "  Uncle,  thou  hast  yet  three  days'  hard 
travel  before  thee  in  a  land  where  there  is  neither 
home,  house,  nor  hearth,  and  it  will  be  ill  cam])ing 
without  a  fire.     Now  I  have  a  most  Jii)}m)vcd  and  cx- 

^  Sogmo,  sagauiore,  a  chief  ;  the  word  corrupted  iuto  sachem. 


172  THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS, 

cellent  charm,  or  spell,  by  which  I  can  give  thco  tln*ec 
iires,  but  no  more ;  yet  will  they  suffice,  one  for  each 
night,  until  thou  gettest  to  tliy  journey's  end.  And 
this  is  the  manner  thereof :  that  thou  shalt  take  unto 
thee  dry  wood,  even  such  as  men  commonly  burn,  and 
thou  shalt  put  them  together,  even  as  boys  build  little 
wigwams  for  sport,  and  then  thou  :;hidt  jump  over  it. 
And  truly,  uncle,  this  is  an  approved  and  excellent 
charm  of  ripe  antiijuity,  kept  as  a  solemn  secret  among 
the  wolves,  and  thou  art  the  first  not  of  our  holy 
nation  to  whom  it  hath  been  given."     So  they  parted. 

Now  Lox  trudged  on,  and  as  he  went  westwards 
kept  thinking  of  this  great  secret  of  the  pious  and 
peculiar  pcoi)lo,  and  wondering  if  it  were  even  as  the 
Wolf  said,  or  oidy  a  deceit ;  for  however  kindly  he 
was  treated  by  people,  he  always  suspected  that  they 
mocked  him  to  scorn,  or  were  preparing  to  do  so ;  for 
as  he  ever  did  'his  thing  himself  to  every  condition 
of  mankind  or  beasts,  he  constantly  awaited  to  have  it 
done  to  him.  And  being  curious  withal,  and  anxious 
to  see  some  new  thing,  he  had  not  walked  half  an 
hour  ere  he  said,  "  Tush  !  let  me  try  it.  Yea,  and  I 
will ! "  So  building  up  the  sticks,  he  jumped  over 
them,  and  at  once  they  caught  fire  and  blazed  up, 
and  it  came  to  pass  even  as  the  Wolf  had  prophesied. 

Now  having  solaced  himself  by  the  heat,  Lox  went 
on.  And  anon  it  grew  cold  again,  and  he  began  to 
think  how  })lcasaiit  it  was  to  be  warm ;  and  being,  like 
most  evil  people,  wanting  in  a  corner  of  wisdom,  he 
at  once  put  the  sticks  together  again  and  jumped  over 


THE  MERRY  TALES   OF  LOX.  173 

them,  and  as  before  there  rose  a  bhize,  and  lie  was 
hap])y.  An<l  this  was  the  second  fire,  and  he  had  still 
three  cold  nights  before  him  before  he  could  reach 
his  home. 

And  yet  this  Wolverine,  who  was  so  wise  in  all 
wickedness  and  witty  in  evil-doing,  had  not  walked 
into  the  afternoon  before  he  began  to  think  of  the 
third  lire.  "  Truly,"  he  said  to  himself,  "■  who  knows 
but  the  weather  may  take  a  turn  to  a  thaw,  and  give 
us  a  warm  niuht?  Hum!  ha!  methinks  by  the  look 
of  the  clouds  tlie  wind  will  soon  be  southwesterly. 
Have  I  not  heard  my  grandmotiier  say  that  such  a 
color,  even  the  red,  meant  something? — I  forget 
what,  but  it  might  be  a  warm  change.  Luck  be  on 
me,  I  will  risk  tlie  odds."  And,  saying  this,  he  set 
up  the  sticks  again  ;  and  this  was  the  last  fire,  though 
it  was  not  even  the  first  niglit. 

And  when  he  came  after  dark  to  the  first  cam])lng 
place  it  grew  cold  in  earnest.  Ilowbcit  Lox,  think- 
ing that  what  was  good  for  once  must  be  good  forever, 
made  him  his  little  pile  of  sticks  and  jumped  over 
them.  It  was  of  no  avail.  Finally,  when  lie  had 
jumped  twenty  or  thirty  times  more,  there  arose  a  lit- 
tle smoke,  and,  having  his  heart  cheered  by  this,  he 
kept  on  jumping.  Now  it  is  said  that  there  can  be 
no  smoke  without  fire,  l)ut  this  time  it  went  not  beyond 
smoke.  Then  Lox  jumped  again,  and  this  time  the 
Indian  Devil  came  up  within  him,  and  he  swore  by  it 
that  he  would  jump  till  it  blazed  or  burst.  So  he 
kept  ou,  and  yet  there  came  no  comfort,  not  even  a 


174  THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

spark;  and  being-  at  last  aweary  liu  fell  down  in  a 
owoon,  and  so  froze  to  death.  And  so  the  Devil  was 
dead,  and  that  was  the  last  of  him  for  that  turn  ;  but 
I  think  he  got  over  it,  for  he  has  been  seen  many  a 
time  since. 

In  two  stories  Lox  (once  as  the  loitp  ccrvio')  is  in- 
timate with  the  wolves.  Loki  was  the  father  of  the 
wolves.  Loki  is  fire  ;  here  Lox  dies  for  want  of  fire. 
Since  I  wrote  the  foregoing,  Mrs.  W.  Wallace  Brown 
has  learned  that  Lox  is  definitely  the  king  or  chief 
of  the  wolves,  and  that  many  Indians  deny  that  he  is 
really  an  animal  at  all,  though  he  assumes  the  forms 
of  certain  animals,  lie  is  a  spirit,  and  the  Mischief 
Maker.  It  will  be  admitted  that  this  brings  the  Lox 
much  nearer  to  Loki. 

It  is  said  that  when  Glooslcap  left  the  world,  as  he 
tooli  away  with  him  the  kings  of  all  the  animals,  Lox 
went  with  him  as  king  of  the  Wolves.  This  is  an 
identification  of  him  with  Malsum,  the  Wolf,  himself. 

Hoiv  Master  Lox  played  a  Trick  on  Mrs.  Bear,  who  lost 
her  eyesight  and  had  her  eyes  opened. 

(Micmac.) 

Don't  live  with  mean  people  if  you  can  help  it. 
They  will  turn  your  greatest  sorrow  to  their  own  ac- 
count if  they  can.  Bad  habit  gets  to  be  devilisli  sec- 
ond nature.  One  dead  herring  is  not  much,  but  one 
by  one  you  may  make  such  a  heap  of  them  as  to  stink 
out  a  whole  village. 


THE  AfEIiliY  TALES  OF  WX.  175 

As  it  liappenud  to  old  Mrs.  Hear,  who  was  cas}'  as 
rej^ai'detl  people,  and  tliouglit  well  of  eveiybotly,  and 
tnisteil  all.  So  she  took  in  for  a  lionse-mate  another 
old  woman.  Their  wigwam  was  all  by  itself,  and  the 
next  neighbor  was  so  far  olf  that  he  was  not  tlicir 
neighbor  at  all,  but  that  of  some  other  folks. 

One  night  the  old  women  made  up  a  fire,  and  lay 
down  and  went  to  sleep  Indian-fashion,  —  vntlnsoodi- 
jU;  —  heads  and  points,  so  that  both  coiUd  lie  with 
their  baek  to  the  fire. 

Now  while  they  were  sound  asleep,  Lox,  the  Wol- 
verine, or  Indian  Devil,  eame  prowling  round.  Some 
people  say  it  was  Ilespuns,  the  Kaccoon  ;  and  it  is  a 
fact  that  Master  Coon  can  play  a  very  close  game  of 
deviltry  on  his  own  account.  However,  this  time  it 
must  have  beei^Lox,  as  you  can  see  by  the  tracks. 

While  they  were  both  sound  asleep  Lox  looked  in. 
He  found  the  old  women  asleep,  heads  and  points,  and 
at  once  saw  his  way  to  a  neat  little  bit  of  mischief. 
So,  going  into  the  woods,  he  cut  a  fine  long  sapling- 
pole  of  02ij-ho-goo8,  and  poked  one  end  of  it  into  the 
fire  till  it  was  a  burning  coal.  Then  he  touched  the 
soles  of  Mrs.  Bear  ;  and  she,  waking,  cried  out  to 
the  other,  "  Take  care !  you  arc  burning  me !  "  which 
the  other  denied  like  a  thunder-clap. 

Then  Master  Lox  carefully  ajiplied  the  end  of  the 
hot  pole  to  the  feet  of  the  other  woman.  First  she 
dreamed  that  she  was  walking  on  hot  sand  and  roist- 
ing  rocks  in  summer-time,  and  then  that  the  Mohawks 
were  cooking  ]  or  at  the  death-fire ;  and  then  she  woke 


176  THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

up,  and,  seeing  wliero  she  was,  began  to  blarao  Mrs. 
Bear  for  it  all,  just  as  if  sho  were  a  Mohawk. 

All,  yes.  Well,  Master  Lox,  seeing  them  fighting 
in  a  great  rage,  burst  out  laughing,  so  that  he  aetually 
burst  himself,  ami  fell  down  tlead  with  delight.  It 
was  a  regular  side-splitter.  When  my  grandfather 
said  t/i(U  we  ulnmijs  laughed. 

In  the  morning,  when  the  women  came  out,  there 
lay  a  dead  devil  at  the  door,  lie  must  inde((d  have 
looked  like  a  Kaceoon  this  time ;  but  whatever  he 
was,  they  took  him,  skinned  him,  and  dressed  him  for 
breakfast.  Then  the  kettle  was  hung  and  the  water 
boiled,  and  they  popped  hiiu  in.  But  as  soon  as  it 
began  to  scald  he  began  to  come  to  life.  In  a  minute 
he  was  all  together  again,  alive  and  well,  and  with 
one  good  leap  went  elear  of  the  kettle.  Hushing  out 
of  the  lodge,  he  grabbed  his  skin,  which  hung  ou  a 
bush  outside,  put  it  on,  and  in  ten  seconds  wa-j  safe 
in  the  greenwood.  lie  just  saved  himself  with  a 
whole  skin. 

Now  Master  Lox  had  precious  little  time,  you  will 
say,  to  do  any  more  mischief  between  his  coming  to 
life  and  running  away ;  yet,  short  as  the  allowance 
was,  he  made  a  great  deal  of  it.  For  even  while 
jumping  out  his  wits  for  wickedness  came  to  him, 
a  id  he  just  kicked  the  edge  of  the  pot,  so  that  it 
spilled  all  the  scalding  hot  water  into  the  fire,  and 
threw  up  the  ashes  with  a  great  si)luttcr.  They  flew 
into  the  eyes  of  Dame  Bear  and  blinded  her. 

Now  this  was  hard  on  the  old  lady.     She  coiUd  not 


THE  MERRY  TALES  OF  LOX.  177 

go  out  hunting,  or  set  traps,  or  fish  any  more  ;  and 
her  partner,  being  mean,  kei)t  all  tiie  nice  morsels  for 
herself.  Mrs.  IJear  only  got  tiie  leanest  and  poorest 
of  the  moat,  though  there  was  plenty  of  the  best.  As 
my  grandfather  used  to  say,  Mrs.  Dear  might  have 
fared  better  if  slie  had  used  her  eyes  earlier. 

One  day,  when  she  was  sitting  alone  in  the  wigwam, 
Mrs.  Bear  began  to  remember  all  she  had  ever  heard 
about  eyes,  and  it  eame  into  her  head  that  sometimes 
they  were  closed  up  in  8u«ih  a  way  that  clever  folk 
could  cut  them  open  again.  So  she  got  her  knife  and 
sharpened  it,  and,  carefully  cutting  a  little,  saw  tho 
light  of  day.  Then  she  was  glad  inch^ed,  and  witli  a 
little  more  cutting  found  that  she  could  see  as  well  as 
ever.  And  as  good  luck  does  not  come  single,  tho 
very  first  thing  she  beheld  was  an  abundance  of  beau- 
tiful fat  venison,  fish,  and  maple-sugar  hung  up  over- 
head. 

Dame  Bear  said  nothing  about  her  having  recov- 
ered her  eyesight.  She  watched  all  tlie  cooking  going 
on,  and  saw  the  daintiest  dinner,  which  all  went  into 
one  i)lattGr,  and  a  very  poor  lot  of  bones  and  scraps 
placed  in  another.  Then,  when  she  was  called  to  eat, 
she  sini])ly  said  to  the  other  woman,  wlio  kept  the 
best,  "  Well,  you  have  done  well  for  yourself  !  " 

The  other  saw  that  Mrs.  Bear  had  recovered  her 
sight.  She  was  frightened,  for  Dame  Bear  was  by 
far  the  better  man  of  the  two.  So  she  cried  out, 
"  Bless  me  !  what  a  mistake  I  'vo  made  !  Why,  I 
gave  you  the  wrong  dish.     You  know,  my  dear  sis- 

12 


178  THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

tur,  that  I  jilways  ^Mve  you  the  best  becuuao  you  aro 
blind. " 

My  ^raiullathcr  said  that  al'ter  this  Mrs.  IJcar  kept 
hoi*  eyes  open  on  pc»)ph3  in  two  ways.  Aud  it  always 
inaihi  us  hiu<^h,  that  did. 

The  Spiiit  of  Mischief  in  these  stories  is  sometimes 
Lox,  the  Wolverine; ;  at  others  the  Ha(!eoon,  or  tho 
JJadger.  Their  adventures  arc  intert'han;^eable.  Jiut 
the  character  is  always  the  san)e,  and  it  is  nmeh  like 
that  of  Loki.  Now  Loki  is  Fire  ;  and  it  may  bo  ob- 
served in  this  Icf^end  that  the  wolverine  or  raccoon 
comes  to  life  when  thrown  into  scalding  water,  and 
that  in  anotlicr  narrative  Lox  dies  for  want  of  fire  ; 
in  another  he  is  pricked  by  thorns  and  stun<^  by  ants. 
"  We  nuist,"  says  C.  F.  Keary,  in  his  Mythology  of  tho 
Eddas,  "  admit  that  the  constant  ap})earancc  of  thorn- 
hedges,  pricking  with  a  slecp-thoin  (Lox's  thorns  aro 
his  bed),  in  (ierman  and  Norse  legends,  is  a  mythical 
way  of  ex]n'essi  ng  the  idea  of  the  funeral  y«Vfi." 

The  first  thinir  that  the  Lox-liaccoon  does  in  this 
tale,  on  coming  to  life,  is  to  upset  a  pot  into  the  ashes 
for  mischief's  sake.  And  the  very  first  exploit  of  tho 
magic  deer,  made  by  tlio  evil  s})irlts  and  sorcerers  in 
the  Kalevaka  (Kunes  XIII.),  is  thus  set  forth:  — 

"  Tlion  tho  Iliisi  stag  went  bounding, 
IJonnding  to  the  land  of  Polija, 
Till  he  ri'at'hod  the  ftelds  of  Lai)land. 
Passing  there  before  a  cabin  (gontte), 
With  a  single  kick  while  ruuuiug 


THE  MERRY  TALES  OF  LOX.  170 

IIo  upset  the  lM>iIin^  kcttio, 

So  tliut  nil  tiio  luuiit  wont  rolliug, 

KuUiiig  ruiaud  in  tiiu  iislios, 

Aud  tho  »oui>  iiiioii  tlic  hciirtli-btono." 

This  is,  ill  hotli  cases,  the  very  first  act  of  an  ani- 
mal, created  and  liviiifjf  only  for  mischief,  on  coming 
to  a  magic  or  artilicial  life. 

Tho  legends  of  Finland  and  Lapland  arc  as  impor- 
tant as  tho  Norse  to  explain  the  origin  of  our  liidiau 
mythology. 

IIoiv  Lox  came  to  Grief  hy  tri/iufj  to  catch  a  Salmon. 
(PiiSHania(iu()(l(ly.) 

Kusk,  the  Crane,  had  two  brothers.  One  of  tlieso 
was  Lox,  tlie  Wolverine,  or  Indian  Devil.  And  his 
other  brother  was  Koskomiues,  the  Blue  Jay. 

Kusk  was  very  lazy,  and  one  day,  l)eing  hungry, 
thought  ho  would  go  and  get  a  dinner  from  Lox.  Lox 
served  him  a  kind  of  pudding-soup  in  a  broad,  flat 
platter.  Poor  Kusk  could  harilly  get  a  mouthful, 
while  Lox  lapped  it  all  up  witli  ease. 

Soon  after,  Kusk  made  a  fine  sou]),  and  invited  Lox 
to  dinner.  This  he  served  uj)  in  a  jug,  a  long  cylinder. 
None  of  it  had  Lox.     Kusk  ate  it  all. 

The  next  day  the  pair  went  to  dine  with  Blue  Jay. 
Blue  Jay  said,  "  Wait  till  I  get  our  food."  Then  he 
ran  out  on  a  bough  of  a  tree  which  spread  over  a 
river,  and  in  a  minute  fished  out  a  large  salmon. 
"  Truly,"  thought  Lox,  "  that  is  easy  to  do,  and  I  can 
do  it." 


180  Tiir.  Ai.aoNQiUN  i.i:(;i:m)s. 

So  {\\r  uv\\  ^\n\  lie  iiivilnl  I  lie  Hliio  .lay  iuu\  (\".\iH\ 
(o  lord  \\'\{\\  liiiu.  IMicn  he,  loo,  r.'Ui  down  lu  llit> 
river  ;  n<l  out  on  a  (rro,  ;nul,  Ht'oiu;;  jt  lino  M;ilni(>ii, 
o:in!;lil  at  i(  with  liis  claws.  Hnlr  lio  lia<l  ntil  Irarnod 
llio  ;ul,  and  so  loll  into  llio  riviT,  and  \va.s  Hwopt  awjiy 
by  (lio  rnshiny  ourrout. 

This  is  ono  <»l"  l'-s(>|>"s  laMcs  Indiani/.od  and  oddly 
oUivl  onl  with  a  lVa;;nion(  from  a  inylh  allriliulcd  to 
lu>th  Manoho/ho  and  (li(>  \\  ahanaKi  Kahhi!.  As  1Im< 
\VolviM'ino  has  a  :.;rral  rcsonddant c  lo  Loki,  it  may  ho 
hew  ohs(M'Vi*d  thai,  while  ho  dios  in  Iryin;;  lo  i-alch  a 
sahuon,  "  LoKi,  in  (he  iikiMicss  of  a  salmon,  cast  him- 
self into  the  wahMJail  <»t  l'Vanan;;r,'"  which  was  cIVocv 
tivcly  his  last  act  in  iito  hcror(<  hoini;'  captured  hy  lhi» 
^OiU,  as  told  in  lh(>  h'dda.  Oiler,  in  th(>  Kdda,  ca.i>,t;ht 
a  salnmn.  and  was  (Ikmi  can^ht  hy  LoUi.  'rher(>  is,  of 
oourse,  i;real  confusion  here,  hnl  the  In<lian  lal(>  is  a, 
mere  fraiiuuMil,  caudi'ssly  ])ieced  and  in<lilYcrently  told. 
Lox  is,  like  LoUi,  ///v,  and  lUM'ishes  by  water. 

ILvr  Mdsfrr  Lox  as  a  Uaccoon  killril  tin'  luutr  <nul  the 
Black  Cafa.  au<^  prrformcd  other  Sotahlc  Feats  of  Ski//, 
a//  to  /lis  (iirttt  Disrn'illt. 

(riissaiuiuiuoddv.) 

Now  of  old  time  there  is  a  tab*  of  llespuus,  tlio 
Kacvoon,  aeeordiuj:;  io  the  Passaniaciuoddy  Indians, 
but  by  another  record  it  is  Master  Lox,  to  whom  all 
Indian  deviltry  truly  beloni;'s.  And  this  is  the  story. 
Ono  line  morning  Master  Lox  started  olT  as  a  Kac- 


77//';   MEIIUY   TM.IIS   (H'   l.()\.  I8l 

coon;'  l<»r  lie  wiilKnl  l.lic  rjulli  in  <IIv<'im  «linMiiiHCH,  in 
tnlu)  lii.H  UHU.'il  r<niii(l!ilK»ii(,fi,  mihI  ;im  Ik-  wrnl,  he  .,;iw  ;i 
luif';o  licar,  jim  llic   iMiiniiMciipt,   rradit,   "  ii;^lit  Kti;ii;j;lif, 

uIk'IkI   hI'    IlilM." 

Now  IIk'  o|«|  l»r;ir  \v;i;i  very  ",I;mI  Ik  fur  Ilit;  K;i(:- 
ruoii,  lor  lit>  li:i(l  in.'icl)-  m|>  liin  mjiid  lo  lull  iiiin  ;il, 
onc(>  if  111"  roiild  :  lii-nfly,  lo  |iiiiii:.li  liiiri  lor  lii.4  hImm; 
nnil  H('C(»inlly,  io  r;il  liiiii  lor  KrnjiKI'.'iHt.  Tlirti  llin 
Raccoon  ran  inio  a  liollow  Irco,  the  Hear  lollovvin;^, 
:in(l  bc^^innniL;  Io  ro(»|,  it,  m|». 

Now  I  lit'  ( '(Mtn  saw  llial,  In  a.  Ifw  inimitis  llic  lice 
w<uil(l  ;.;o  iind  lie  lie  ;.;on(>.  i»nl,  lie  l)(;'iin  Io  Hin;^^  as  il' 
luMlid  not  carr  ;i  hcan,  and  raid,  "'All  llic  <li;.f;;in^f  and 
j)nsliin<;'  iliis  ircc  will  n<'v<'f  cal'li  iiii!.  I'nsli  your 
way  in  liadiwards,  and  IIkii  I  rnnsi,  yield  and  die,. 
I'nl  lliat  yon  cannol  do,  since  the  hole  is  |,o(»  .sniall  lor 
yon."  Then  Mooin,  I  he  l>rniii,  hearin;^  Ihi  i,  helieved 
li,  Itni  saw  that  he  conld  easily  enlarj^e  llie  hole,  which 
h(>  did,  and  so  y\\\  hiniscdl"  in  arrcar  ;  npon  whieii 
the  lvac<;ooii  seized  him,  and  held  on  I  ill  he  was 
slain.'** 

Then  he  crawled  onf  of  the  ti'ee,  and,  havin;;  niu<lo 
liinis(df  ;i  i\m\  pair  of  inlti.ens  out  of  the  liar's  .shin, 
started  off  ajL;aiii,  and  soon  saw  a  wi;;wani  fr<jni  which 
ros(>  ;i  smoke,  and,  walking'  in,  he  found  a  family  of 
Ji<'f/c7nkfssi}ick,  or  lihiclc  Cats.     So,  i^reeting  them,  he 

^  Tin;  siiiiio  stdrirs  arc  iitti'ilniUMl  to  tin;  Wnlvcriiic,  I'ad^^rT, 
and  Kaccooii. 

^  As  Kevnard,  the  Fox,  won  tlic  victory  in  tlio  famous  Uilo  ver- 
silied  by  Goethe.     Viilo  liclnccke  Fuchs, 


182      THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

sjiitl,  "  Young"  folks,  coml)  mo  down  and  make  mo 
nice,  and  1  will  give  you  tlieso  beautiful  bear-skin  mit- 
tens." So  the  little  lilack  Cats  combed  him  down, 
and  i)arted  his  hair,  and  brushed  his  tail,  and  while 
they  were  doing  this  he  fell  asleep ;  and  they,  being 
very  hungry,  took  tlie  f  resli  bear  -  skin  mitts,  and 
scrai)cd  them  all  up,  an«l  cooked  and  ate  them.  Then 
the  Coon,  waking  up,  looked  very  angry  at  them,  and 
said  in  an  awful  voice,  ''  Wliere  are  my  bear-skin 
mitts  ?  "  And  they,  in  great  fear,  replied,  "  Please, 
sir,  we  cooked  and  ate  them."  Then  the  Coon  tlew 
at  them  and  strangled  them  every  one,  all  except  the 
youngest,  who,  since  he  could  not  speak  as  yet,  the 
Kaccoon,  or  Lox,  thought  could  not  tell  of  him. 
Then,  for  a  great  joke,  he  took  all  tlie  little  dead 
creatures  and  set  them  up  by  the  road-side  in  a  row ; 
as  it  was  a  cold  day  they  all  froze  stiff,  and  then  he 
put  a  stick  across  their  jaws,  so  that  the  little  lilack 
Cats  looked  as  if  they  were  laughing  for  joy.  Then 
he  made  off  at  full  speed. 

Soon  the  father,  the  old  Black  Cat,  came  home, 
and,  seeing  his  children  all  grinning  at  him,  he  said, 
"IIow  glad  the  dear  little  things  are  to  see  me."  But 
as  none  moved  he  saw  that  something  was  wrong,  and 
his  joy  soon  changed  to  sorrow.^ 

Then  the  youngest  Black  Cat,  the  baby,  came  out 

^  This  trick  is  so  prooisoly  in  tlie  stvlc;  of  Lox  that  it  seems  a 
gross  mistake  to  attribute  it  to  the  Raccoon.  Those  who  have 
seen  a  wild  cat  griu  will  appreciate  the  humor  of  Lox  ou  this 
occasion. 


THE  MERRY  TALES  OF  LOX.  183 

of  some  hole  where  he  had  Iiid  himself.  Now  the  baby 
was  t(Jo  youuf;^  to  s})eak,  but  he  was  very  clever,  and, 
j)ieking  up  a  piece  of  charcoal,  he  made  a  mark  from 
the  end  of  his  mouth  around  his  cheek.^  Then  tho 
father  cried,  "Ah,  novj  I  know  who  it  was, —  the  Kac- 
coon,  as  sure  as  1  live  I  "  And  he  started  after  him 
in  hot  pursuit. 

Soon  the  Ixaceoon  saw  the  fierce  lilack  Cat,  as  an 
Indian,  coming  after  him  with  a  club.  And,  looking 
at  him,  he  said,  "  No  club  can  kill  me ;  nothing  but  a 
bulrush  or  cat-tail  can  take  my  life."  Then  the  lUack 
Cat,  who  knew  where  to  get  one,  gallopetl  off  to  a 
swamp,  and,  having  got  a  large  cat-tail,  came  to  tho 
Coon  and  hit  him  hard  with  it.  It  burst  and  spread 
all  over  the  llaccoon's  head,  and,  being  wet,  the  fuzz 
stuck  to  him.  And  the  Black  Cat,  thinking  it  wa^i 
the  Coon's  brains  arid  all  out,  went  his  way. 

The  Kaccoon  lay  quite  still  till  his  foe  was  gone, 
and  then  went  on  his  travels.  Now  he  was  a  great 
magician,  though  little  to  other  folks'  good.  And  he 
came  to  a  place  where  there  were  many  women  nurs- 
ing their  babes,  and  said,  "This  is  but  a  slow  way  you 
have  of  raising  childi'cn."  To  wliicli  the  good  women 
replied,  "'IIow  else  should  we  raise  them  ?  "  Then  he 
answered,  "  I  will  show  you  how  we  do  in  our  countiy. 
When  we  want  them  to  grow  fast,  we  di})  tlieni  into 
cold  water  over  niuht.  Just  lend  me  one,  and  I  will 
show  you  how  to  raise  them  in  a  hurry."     They  gave 

^  The  rciuler  cannot  fail  to  recall  the  peculiar  mustache  of  tho 
Raccoon  so  well  mdicated  by  the  infant  artist. 


184      THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

him  one:  ho  took  it  to  tlio  river,  and,  cnttiiiL!^  a  hole  in 
tlio  iee,  ])ut  tlie  child  into  it.  The  next  morning  ho 
went  to  the  place,  and  took  out  a  i'ldl-grown  man,  alivo 
and  well.  Tlie  women  were  indeed  astonished  at  this. 
All  hastened  to  j)ut  their  bahes  that  night  under  the 
iee,  and  then  the  Kaeeoou  rushed  away.  So  they  all 
died. 

Then  he  came  to  another  eamp,  where  many  women 
with  line  stuff  and  furs  were  makiuii'  baii's.  "That 
is  a  very  slow  way  you  have  of  working,''  he  said 
to  the  goodwives.  "  In  our  country  we  cook  them 
under  the  ashes.  Let  me  see  the  stuff  and  show  you 
how  I  "  They  gave  him  a  piece  :  he  i)ut  it  under  the 
hot  coals  and  ashes,  and  in  a  few  minutes  drew  out 
from  them  a  beautiful  bag.  Then  they  all  hurried  to 
put  their  cloth  under  the  fire.  Just  then  he  left  in 
haste.  And  when  they  drew  the  stuff  out  it  was 
scorched  or  burned,  and  all  spoiled. 

Then  he  came  to  a  great  river,  and  did  not  know 
how  to  get  aeross.  lie  saw  on  the  bank  an  old  ]I7- 
ivU/mckcf,  a  strange  worm  which  is  like  a  horned  al- 
ligator;  but  he  was  blind.  "  (Jrandfather,"  said  the 
Raccoon,  "carry  mo  over  the  lake."  "Yes,  my  grand- 
son," said  the  Wiwillmek(j',  and  away  he  swam ;  tho 
Kavens  and  Crows  above  began  to  ridicule  them. 
"  AVhat  are  those  birds  saying  ?  "  incpiired  the  Old 
One.  "  Oh,  they  arc  erying  to  you  to  hurrj%  hurry, 
for  your  life,  with  that  Kaecoon !  "  So  the  Wiwill- 
mek([',  not  seeing  land  ahead,  hurried  with  such  speed 
that  the  Kaeeoou  made  him  run  his  head  and  half  his 


THE  MERRY  TALES  OF  LOX.  185 

Ixnly  into  the  bunlc,  and  then  jnnipcd  oiT  and  l(,'ft 
liini.  But  wlu'tlier  tin;  WiwillnicUcj'  ever  <;()t  out 
again  is  more  than  he  ever  tvonhled  himself  to  know. 

So  lie  went  on  till  he  eame  to  some  Jilaek  IJerries, 
and  said,  "  Beriies,  how  would  yon  agree  with  me  if 
I  should  eat  yon?"  '"Badly  indeed,  Master  Coon," 
they  replied,  "  for  we  are  Choke-berries."  "'  Choke- 
herries,  imleed !  Then  I  will  have  none  of  you."  And 
then  furtluM"  he  found  on  some  busiics,  Kiee-berries. 
"  JJerries,"  he  (;ried,  '"•  how  would  you  agree  with  mo 
If  I  should  cat  you  ?  "'  "  We  should  make  you  iteh,  for 
wo  are  Itch-berries."  "  Ah,  that  is  what  I  like,"  ho 
replied,  and  so  ate  his  (ill.  Tium  as  he  went  on  ho 
felt  very  uneasy :  he  seemed  to  be  tormented  with 
prickles,  ho  scratched  and  scratched,  but  it  di<l  not 
hel})  or  cure.  So  he  rubbed  himself  on  a  ragged  rock  ; 
he  slid  uj)  and  down  it  till  the  hair  came  oil". 

Now  the  Kaccoon  is  bare  or  has  little  fur  wlujre  he 
scratched  himself,  to  this  very  day.  This  story  is  at 
an  end. 

This  story  is  from  the  Passamaquoddy  Indian-Eng- 
lish collection  made  for  me  by  Louis  Mitchell.  In 
the  original,  the  same  incident  of  boiling  the  hero  in 
a  kettle  and  of  his  springing  out  of  it  occurs  as  in 
the  tale  of  Mrs.  Bear  and  the  IJaccoon.  This  I  have 
here  omitted.  The  Mephisto})helian  and  mocking 
character  of  Lox  is  strongly  shown  when  he  says, 
"Nothing  but  a  eat-tail  or  bulrush  can  kill  me,"  this 
being  evidently  an  allusion  to  Glooskai).     This  is  to 


180  THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

an  Indian  nnicli  Hko  blaspluMny.  Lox,  or  Eaccoon,  or 
Batlgor,  —  for  they  are  all  the  same,  —  in  his  joiirney- 
ings  after  mere  mischief  reminds  us  of  an  Indian  Tyll 
Eulenspiegel.  Ijiit  the  atrocious  nature  of  his  jokes 
is  like  nothing  else,  unless  it  be  indeed  the  homicido 
Punch.  It  is  the  indomitable  nature  of  both  wliich 
connuends  them  respectively  to  the  Englishman  and 
to  the  lied  Indian.  \\\  this  tale  Lox  appears  as  the 
spirit  of  fire  by  drawing  a  bag  from  it.  The  itching 
or  pricking  from  which  he  suffers  is  also  significant  of 
that  element,  as  appears,  according  to  Keary,  in  many 
Norse,  etc.,  legends. 

In  the  Seneca  tale  of  the  Mischief  Maker,  the  Ber- 
ries are  distinctly  declared  to  have  souls. 

IIow  Lox  deceived  the  Duel's,  cheated  the  Chief,  and  he- 

gniled  the  Bear. 

(]Miemac  and  Passaniaquoddy.) 

Somewhere  in  the  forest  lived  Lox,  with  a  small 
boy,  his  brother.  When  winter  came  they  went  far 
into  the  woods  to  hunt.  And  going  on,  they  reached 
at  last  a  very  large  and  beautiful  lake.  It  was  cov- 
ered with  water-fowd.  There  were  wild  geese  and  brant, 
black  ducks  and  wood -ducks,  and  all  the  smaller 
kinds  down  to  teal  and  whistlers. 

The  small  boy  was  delighted,  to  see  so  much  game. 
He  eagerly  asked  his  brother  how  he  meant  to  catch 
them.  He  answered,  "  We  must  first  go  to  work  and 
build  a  large  wigwam.  It  must  be  very  strong,  with 
a  heavy,  solid  door."    This  was  done;  and  Lox,  being 


THE  MERRY  TALES  OF  LOX.  187 

a  groat  magician,  tliiis  arningcd  his  plans  for  taking 
the  wild-fowl.  He  sent  tlie  boy  ont  to  a  })oint  of  laud, 
where  he  was  to  cry  to  the  birds  and  tell  them  that 
his  brother  wished  to  give  them  a  hlngly  reee})tion. 
(^Ndkamit^  to  act  the  king.)  lie  told  them  their  king 
had  come.  Then  Lox,  arraying  himself  grandly,  sat 
with  dignity  next  the  door,  with  his  eyes  closed,  as  if 
in  great  state.  Then  the  little  boy  shouted  that  they 
might  enter  and  hear  what  the  gTcat  sagamore  had 
to  say.  They  flocked  in,  and  took  their  scats  in  the 
order  of  their  size.  The  Wild  Geese  came  nearest 
and  sat  down,  then  the  Ducks,  and  so  on  to  the  small- 
est, who  sat  nearest  the  door.  Last  of  all  came  the 
boy,  who  entering  also  sat  down  by  the  door,  closed  it, 
and  held  it  fast.  So  the  little  birds,  altumabedujih 
(M.),  sat  next  to  him. 

Then  they  were  all  told  "  Spcgicedajih  1 "  "  Shut 
your  eyes  !  "  and  were  directed  to  keep  them  closed 
for  their  very  lives,  until  directed  to  open  them  again. 
Unless  they  did  this  first,  their  eyes  would  be  blinded 
forever  when  they  beheld  their  king  in  all  his  magnif- 
icence. So  they  sat  in  silence.  Then  the  sorcerer, 
stci)ping  softly,  took  them  one  by  one,  grasping  each 
tightly  by  the  wings,  and  ere  the  bird  knew  what  he 
was  about  it  had  its  head  crushed  between  his  teeth. 
And  so  without  noise  or  fluttering  he  killed  all  the 
AVild  Geese  and  Brant  and  Black  Ducks.  Then  the 
little  boy  began  to  pity  the  poor  small  wild-fowl.  He 
thought  it  was  a  shame  to  kill  so  many,  having  al- 
ready more  than  they  needed.     So  stooping  down,  he 


188      THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS, 

whisjicred  to  a  very  little  bird  to  open  its  eyes.  It 
did  so,  but  very  euutiously  indeed,  for  fear  of  being 
blinded. 

Great  was  his  horror  to  see  what  Lox  was  doing! 
lie  screamed,  "  7iW//7ne(/«'//;/ "  "We  are  all  being 
killed !  "  Then  they  opened  their  eyes,  and  flew  about 
in  the  utmost  confusion,  screaming  loudly  in  terror. 
The  little  boy  dropped  down  as  if  he  had  been  knocked 
over  in  the  confusion,  so  that  the  door  flew  wide  open, 
and  the  birds,  rushing  over  him,  beg  an  to  escape,  while 
Lox  in  a  rage  continued  to  seize  them  and  kill  them 
with  his  teeth.  Then  the  little  boy,  to  avoid  suspi- 
cion, grasped  the  last  fugitive  by  the  legs  and  held 
him  fast.  But  he  was  suspected  all  the  same  by  the 
wily  sorcerer,  who  caught  him  up  roughly,  and  would 
have  beaten  him  cruelly  but  that  he  earnestly  pro- 
tested that  the  birds  knocked  him  down  and  forced 
the  door  open,  and  that  he  could  by  no  means  help  it : 
which  being  somewhat  slowly  believed,  he  was  for- 
given, and  they  began  to  pluck  and  dress  the  game. 
The  giblets  were  preserved,  the  fowls  sliced  and  dried 
and  laid  by  for  the  winter's  store. 

Then  having  plenty  of  provisions,  Lox  gave  a 
feast.  Among  the  guests  were  Marten  and  Mahti- 
gwess,  the  Rabbit,  who  talked  together  for  a  long 
time  in  the  most  confidential  manner,  the  Rabbit  con- 
fiding and  the  Marten  attending  to  him. 

Now  while  this  conversation  had  l)een  going  on,  Lox, 
who  was  deeply  addicted  to  all  kinds  of  roguery  and 
mischief,  had  listened  to  it  with  interest.     And  when 


THE  MERRY  TALES  OF  LOX.  189 

the  two  little  giicsts  had  ceased  he  asked  them  where 
their  village  was,  and  who  lived  in  it.  Then  he  was 
told  tliat  all  the  largest  animals  iiad  their  homes 
there  :  the  bear,  earil)oii  or  reindeer,  deer,  wolf,  wild 
cat,  to  say  nothing  of  squirrels  and  niiee.  And  having 
got  them  to  show  him  the  way,  he  some  time  after 
turned  himself  into  a  young  woman  of  great  beauty, 
or  at  least  disguised  himself  like  one,  and  going  to  tlio 
village  married  the  young  chief.  And  having  left  lit- 
tle Marten  alone  in  a  hollow  tree  outside  the  village, 
the  boy,  getting  hungry,  began  to  howl  for  food  ; 
which  the  villagers  hearing  were  in  a  great  fright. 
But  the  young  chief's  wife,  or  the  magician  Lox, 
soon  explained  to  them  what  it  meant.  "  It  is,"  she- 
he  said,  '"''Owoolahumoocjit^  the  Si)irit  of  Famine. 
He  is  grim  and  gaunt ;  hear  how  he  howls  for  food  ! 
Woe  be  unto  you,  should  he  reach  this  village  !  Ah, 
I  remember  only  too  well  what  haiipened  when  he 
once  came  among  us.     Horror!  starvation  !  " 

"  Can  yon  drive  him  back  ?  "  cried  all  the  villagers. 

"  Yes,  't  is  in  my  power.  Do  l)ut  give  me  the  wrll- 
tanned  hide  of  a  yearling  moose  and  a  good  supply 
of  moose-tallow,^  then  the  noise  will  cease."  And 
seizing  it,  and  howling  furiously  the  name  of  his 
brother  after  a  fashion  which  no  one  could  under- 
stand,—  A(i-cJioiow(i''n!  —  and  bidding  him  begone, 
he  rushed  out  into  the  night,  until  he  came  to  Mar- 
ten, to  whom  he  gave  the  food,  and,  wrai)ping  him  n]> 
well  in  the  moose-skin,  bade  him  wait  a  wliile.     And 

^  A  great  delicacy  among  these  semi-iVrctic  ludiaiLS. 


190  rilE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

the  villajjcrs  thoiiglit  the  cliiefs  wife  was  indeed  a 
very  giejit  ooiijurer. 

And  then  slie-he  announced  that  a  cliihl  would  soon 
be  horn.  And  wlien  the  day  came  IJadger  lianded  out 
a  bundle,  and  said  that  the  babe  was  in  it.  "  A'ool' 
muf<u(j(ikvl(ilmadijitl^'''  '"They  kiss  it  outside  the  blan- 
ket." Jiut  when  the  chief  opened  it  what  he  found 
therein  was  the  di'ied,  withered  end)ryo  of  a  moose- 
calf.  Jn  a  j^reat  rajje  he  fluni;'  it  into  the  fire,  and 
all  rushed  headlong  in  a  furious  j)ack  to  catch  Badger. 
They  saw  him  and  Marten  rusliing  to  the  lake.  They 
pursued  him,  but  when  he  reached  the  bank  the  wily 
sorcerer  cast  in  a  stick  ;  it  turned  into  a  canoe,  and 
long  ere  the  infuriated  villagers  could  reach  them 
they  were  on  the  opposite  shore  and  in  the  woods. 

Now  it  came  to  pass  one  day  that  as  Lox  sat  on  a 
log  a  bear  came  by,  who,  being  a  sociable  fellow,  sat 
down  by  hhn  and  smoked  a  pipe.  AVhile  they  were 
talking  a  gull  flew  over,  and  inadvertently  offered  to 
Lox  what  he  considered,  or  affected  to  consider,  as  a 
great  insult.  And  wiping  the  insult  off,  Lox  cried 
to  the  Gull,  "  Oh,  ungrateful  and  insolciut  creature, 
is  this  the  way  you  reward  me  for  having  made  you 
white !  " 

Now  the  Bear  would  always  be  white  if  he  could, 
for  the  White  Bear  Qtoahn/u  mooiii)  is  the  aristocrat 
of  Beardom.  So  he  eagerly  cried,  "  TIa  I  did  you 
make  the  (iull  wlute?'"' 

"  Indeed  I  ditl,"  replied  Lox.  "  And  this  is  what 
I  get  for  it." 


77/ /i   MEIlItY  TALES  OF  LOX,  191 

"  Could  you,  my  dear  friend,  —  ("oidd  you  make  mo 
white?" 

Then  Lox  naw  his  way,  an<l  replied  that  ho  eould 
indeed,  but  that  it  would  he  a  h)iij^  an<l  a;j;()ni/in<j 
process;  IVIooin  might  die  of  it.  To  be  sure  the  (Jull 
stood  it,  but  eoidd  a  IJear? 

Now  the  Bear,  who  had  a  frame  as  hard  as  a  rock, 
felt  sure  that  lie  could  endure  anything  that  a  gull 
could,  especially  to  become  a  white  bear.  So,  with 
much  ceremony,  tlie  (Jrcat  Knchanter  went  to  work, 
lie  built  a  strong  wigwam,  tlu'ce  feet  high,  of  stones, 
and  having  put  the  liear  into  it  he  east  In  red-hot 
stones,  and  poured  water  on  them  through  a  small 
hole  in  the  roof.  Erelong  the  Bear  was  in  a  terrible 
steam. 

"  Ah,  Doctor  Lox,"  ho  cried,  "  this  is  awfully  hot  I 
I  fear  I  am  dying  !  " 

"  Courage,"  saitl  Lox  ;  "  tliis  is  nothing.  Tlie  Gull 
had  it  twice  as  hot." 

"  Can't  stand  it  any  more,  doctor.      0-o-o-oh  I  " 

Doctor  Lox  threw  in  more  hot  stones  and  poured 
more  water  on  them.     The  Bear  yelled. 

"  Let  me  out !      0-o-h  !  let  me  out !     0-o-o-oh  !  " 

So  he  came  bursting  through  the  door.  Tlie  doc- 
tor examined  him  critically. 

Now  there  is  on  an  old  bear  a  small  white  or  light 
spot  on  his  upper  breast,  wliich  he  cannot  see.^  And 
Doctor  Lox,  looking  at  this,  said,  — 

"  What  a  i)ity  !    You  came  out  just  as  you  were  be- 

^  This  is  very  white  ou  the  Japanese  bears. 


192  77//;   ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

piiiniijf!^  to  turn  vvhito.  Hero  is  tlio  flrHt  sjuit.  Fivo 
iiiiimti's  nioio  :iiul  you  M  li;i\(!  Ixt'ii  a  \vhit(>  lu.-ar. 
Ah,  you  liave  n't  the  [ilucU  of  a  j^ull ;  that  I  can  see." 

Now  tht)  1 'far  was  nioitilird  and  <lisa|i|)ointi'il.  I  lo 
had  not  scon  thu  spot,  so  he  askctl  Lox  if  it  was  really 
there. 

*'  Wait  a  njinute,"  said  t1u>  doctor,  lie  led  the 
Bear  to  a  pool  and  ukuIo  hiui  look  in.  Sin-e  enouj^h, 
the  spot  was  there.  Then  he  asked  if  they  eould  not 
be^in  a;;ain. 

"  Certainly  we  can,"  i-cplicd  the  doctor.  "  I'ut  it 
will  1)0  nnich  hotter  and  harder  and  longer  this  time. 
Don't  try  it  if  yon  feel  afraid,  and  don't  blame  uic  if 
yon  die  of  it." 

The  Hear  went  in  aj^ain,  but  he  never  eamo  ont 
alive.  The  doctor  had  roast  bear  meat  all  that  win- 
ter, and  nnich  bear's  oil.  lie  gave  some  of  the  oil  to 
his  younger  brother.  The  boy  took  it  in  a  measure, 
(loing  along  the  creek,  he  saw  a  ^Mnskrat  (Kchc/hih, 
Pass.),  lie  said  to  the  Muskrat,  ''  If  yon  can  hanhin 
this  oil  for  ni(\  T  will  give  you  half."  The  Muskrat 
made  it  as  hard  as  ice.  The  boy  said,  "  If  my  brother 
comes  and  asks  you  to  do  this  for  him,  do  yon  keep 
it  all."  And,  returning,  ho  showed  the  oil  thus  har- 
dened to  his  brother,  who,  taking  a  largo  nu'asure  of 
it,  went  to  the  Muskrat  and  asked  him  to  harden  it. 
The  ISInskrat  indeed  took  the  dish  and  swam  aAvay 
with  it,  and  never  returned. 

Then  the  eld(!r,  vexed  with  the  younger,  and  re- 
nieinl>ering  the  ducks  in  the  wigwam,  and  believing 
now  that  he  hatl  indeed  been  cheated,  slew  him. 


jy^iNVS  iS^^w^Ji^ 


■■t"  I 


?•.•.." ..  ;•,.■■.■■•."+*'•' 


511  P>? 


THE  INDIAN  BOY  AND  THE  MUSK-RAT.  SEEPS  THE  DUCK. 


THE  MERRY  TALES   OF  LOX.  193 

This  confused  and  strange  story  is  manifestly  pieced 
togetlier  out  of  several  otiiers,  each  of  which  have  in- 
cidents in  connnon.  A  part  of  it  is  very  ancient. 
Firstly,  the  inveigling  the  ducks  into  the  wigwam  is 
found  in  the  Eskimo  tale  of  Avurungnak  (Kink,  p. 
177).  Tlie  Eskimo  is  told  by  a  sorcerer  to  let  tlio 
sea-birds  into  the  tent,  and  not  to  begin  to  kill  them 
till  the  tent  is  full.  Jle  disobeys,  and  a  part  of  them 
escape.  In  Schoolcraft's  Hiawatha  Legends,  Mauo- 
bozho  gets  the  mysterious  oil  which  ends  the  fore- 
going story  from  a  fish.  He  fattens  all  the  animals 
in  the  world  with  it,  and  the  amount  which  they  con- 
sume is  the  present  measure  of  their  fatness.  AVhen 
this  ceremony  is  over,  he  inveigles  all  the  birds  into 
his  power  by  telling  them  to  shut  their  eyes.  At 
last  a  small  duck,  the  diver,  suspecting  something, 
opens  one  eye,  and  gives  the  alarm. 

The  sorcerer's  i)assing'  himself  oft'  for  a  woman  and 
tiie  trick  of  the  moose  abortion  occurs  in  tliree  tales, 
but  it  is  most  completely  given  in  this.  To  this  point 
the  narrative  follows  the  ISIicmac,  l*assanui(pioddy, 
and  C]ui)pcwa  versions.  After  the  tale  of  the  chief 
is  at  an  end  it  is  entirely  Passanuupioddy ;  l)nt  of  the 
latter  I  have  two  versions,  one  from  Tomah  Josephs 
and  one  from  Mrs.  AV.  AVallace  Brown. 

I  can  see  no  sense  in  the  acconnt  of  the  l)car's  oil 

hardened  by  ice,  Init  that  oil  is  an  essential   ])art  of 

the  duck   story  aiijH'ars    from    the    Cirii)|)ewa  li^gcnd 

(Hiawatha  L.  j).  30).     In  tin;  latter  it  is  rci>resented 

as  giving  size  to  those  who  partake  of  it. 
13 


104  THE  AL(;0NQU1N  LEGENDS. 

The  Mischirf  Maker.     A  Tmdltlon  of  the  Orhjln  of  the 
M>jtkolo<j[f  of  the  Seiiccas.     A  Lox  Leyend. 

(Soncca.) 

An  Indian  mischief  niakci'  was  onoo  rovin<jf  about. 
IIo  saw  that  he  was  approaching  a  viUage,  and  said, 
"  How  can  I  attract  attention  ?  " 

Seeing  two  girls  coming  from  the  wigwams,  ho 
pulled  up  a  wild  plum-bush  and  placed  it  u})on  his 
Lead,  the  roots  clasping  about  his  chin. 

"  It  will  bo  strange  to  see  a  plum-tree  on  my  head, 
bearing  ripe  fruit.  These  girls  will  want  trees  also." 
So  he  thought. 

Tlie  tree  shook  as  he  walked,  and  many  plums  fell 
to  the  grounil. 

Ihe  girls  wondered  greatly  at  the  strange  man  with 
the  tree.  Thi'y  admired  it,  and  said  tliey,  too,  would 
like  to  be  always  supplied  with  fruit  in  such  a  man- 
ner. 

"  I  can  manage  that,"  he  rci)lied.  So  lie  pulled 
up  a  bush  for  each,  and  planted  them  on  their  heads. 
The  plums  were  delicious,  and  grew  as  fast  as  they 
were  plucked ;  and  the  girls  stepped  along  proudly, 
for  they  had  sometliing  which  certainly  no  girls  ever 
had  before. 

The  Mischief  Maker  went  on  to  the  village.  On 
the  way  he  reflected,  "  There  is  no  such  thing  in  the 
world  as  a  plum-tree  growing  on  a  man's  head.  I 
will  take  this  off."  He  did  so,  and,  on  entering  tlio 
village,  gave  a  loud  signal  (a  whoop).     All  the  peo- 


THE  MERRY  TALES  OF  LOX.  195 

j)lo  llstoiu'd,  and  the  chiefs  .sent  nies.scnyei'H  to  inqtiiro 
what  news  ho  brought. 

Ho  said,  "1  have  soon  a  very  stran^o  sight.  As  I 
was  eouiing  hitlier  1  saw  two  girls  walking.  Trees 
grew  on  tlieir  lioads ;  the  houghs  wore  covered  with 
pliuns,  and  the  routs,  which  came  through  their  haii", 
were  fasteiioil  ab(jut  their  necks.  They  wore  beauti- 
ful, and  soonied  to  bo  very  happy." 

"■  W^e  will  go  and  see  thoni !  "  cried  the  women. 

They  had  not  gone  far  before  they  saw  one  of  the 
girls  lying  on  the  gnjund,  while  the  other  pulled  at 
the  tree  on  her  head.  Tiie  roots  gave  way  and  the 
tree  came  out,  but  all  the  hair  came  with  it  also. 
Then  the  other  lay  down,  and  her  friend  in  turn 
l)ulled  the  tree  from  her  head.  They  wore  very  an- 
gry, and  said,  "  If  we  moot  with  the  man  who  played 
us  this  trick  we  will  j)unish  him." 

^\  hen  the  women  who  had  gathered  round  tliem 
learned  how  the  trees  had  been  fastened  by  magic 
upon  the  girls'  heads,  tliey  returned  to  the  village,  re- 
solved to  chastise  the  man  who  had  played  the  trick. 
But  when  they  reached  homo  he  was  gone. 

Gone  far  and  away  to  anotlier  town.  Before  reach- 
ing it  he  sat  down,  and  said,  "  Now  I  will  show  these 
people  also  what  I  can  do."  lie  wx'ut  a  little  distance 
into  the  woods,  whore  he  found  a  wigwam.  A  woman 
with  a  bucket  in  her  hand  came  from  it.  He  saw  that 
as  she  passed  along  she  reached  high  with  one  hand, 
and  felt  her  way  by  a  thong  which  ran  from  tree  to 
tree  till  it   ended  at  a  K]>ring  of  cold    water.      She 


196  THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

went  on,  filled  her  bucket,  and  so  returned.  Then 
another  woman  after  her  did  the  same. 

"  They  must  be  blind,"  said  the  Mischief  Maker. 
"  I  will  have  some  fun  with  them."  And  so  it  was. 
There  lived  in  that  wiirwam  five  blind  sisters. 

Then  he  untied  the  thong  from  the  tree  :iear  the 
spring  and  fastened  it  to  another,  where  there  was  no 
water.  Then  a  third  blind  woman  came  with  a  bucket, 
and  followed  the  line  to  the  end,  but  found  no  water. 
She  returned  to  the  wigwam,  and  said,  "  The  spring 
is  dried  up." 

"  No,  it  is  n't,"  replied  one  of  the  sisters,  who  was 
stirring  pudding  over  the  fire.  "  You  say  that  be- 
cause you  are  too  lazy  to  bring  water ;  you  never 
work.  Here,  do  you  stir  the  pudding,  and  let  mo  go 
for  water." 

The  Mischief  Maker  heard  all  this,  and  made  haste 
to  tie  the  end  of  the  thong  where  it  belonged.  The 
blind  woman  filled  her  bucket,  and  when  she  returned 
said  to  her  sister,  "  There,  you  lazy  creature,  I  found 
the  water !  " 

By  this  time  the  Mischief  Maker  was  in  the  house, 
and  slipping  quietly  up  to  the  fire  he  dip})ed  out  some 
of  the  pudding  and  threw  it,  scalding  hot,  into  the 
face  of  the  scolding  woman,  who  cried  in  a  rage,  — 

"  You  throw  hot  pudding  at  me,  do  you  ?  " 

"No,  I  did  not  throw  any  at  you,"  replied  the 
sister. 

Then  the  Mischief  Maker  threw  some  into  her  face. 
She  screamed,  being  very  angry. 


THE  MERIIY   TALES   OF  LOX.  197 

"  You  mean  thing!  You  tliiow  hot  puddhig  at  nie, 
when  I  did  you  no  harm." 

"  I  did  n't  throw  any  !  "  said  the  other,  in  a  rage. 

"  Yes,  you  didif  you  mean  thing !  " 

"  Stop  !  stop  !  "  cried  the  others.  Just  then  hot 
pudding  flew  in  all  their  faces  ;  they  had  a  terrible 
quarrel,  and  the  Miscliief  Maker  left  them  to  settle 
it  among  themselves  as  they  could. 

He  entered  the  viUage  near  by,  and  gave  the  usual 
signal  for  news.  The  runners  came  out  and  met  him  ; 
the  chiefs  and  all  the  people  assembled,  lining  the 
jiatli  on  both  sides  for  a  long  way.  They  asked, 
"  What  news  do  you  bring?  " 

He  replied,  "  I  come  from  a  village  where  there 
is  great  distress.  A  pestilence  visited  the  people.  The 
medicine  man  could  not  cure  the  sick;  till  I  camo 
there  was  no  remedy  ;  the  tribe  was  becoming  very 
smaU.  But  I  told  them  the  remedy,  and  now  they 
are  getting  well.  I  have  come  to  tell  you  to  pre])are 
for  the  pestilence  :  it  will  soon  be  here ;  it  is  flying- 
like  the  wind,  and  there  is  only  one  remedy." 

"What  is  it?  what  is  it?  what  is  it?"  interrupted 
the  people. 

He  answered,  "  Every  man  must  embrace  the  wo- 
man who  is  next  to  him  at  this  very  instant ;  kiss 
her,  quick,  inunediately  !  " 

They  all  did  so  on  the  spot,  he  with  the  rest. 

As  he  was  leaving  them  an  elderly  man  came  to 
him  and  whispered,  "  Are  you  going  to  do  this  thing 
again  at  the  next  village  ?     If  you  arc  I  should  like 


108  THE  ALGOISIQUIN  LEGENDS. 

to  1)0  on  Iiand.  1  did  n't  {;('t  any  girl  myself  horo. 
Tlio  woman  I  wont  tor  dodj^cd  mo,  and  said  she  had 
rathor  have  tlio  ju'stilonco,  and  death  too,  tlian  havo 
mo  kiss  her.     Is  tho  o})eration  to  bo  rop(;atod?" 

Tlio  !Misohiof  Maker  said  that  it  certainly  would 
be,  about  tho  mi<ldlo  of  tlu^  morrow  forenoon. 

*'  Then  1  will  start  now,"  said  tho  middlo-agcd 
man,  "  for  I  am  lame,  and  it  will  take  me  all  night 
to  j;et  there." 

So  ho  hurried  on,  and  at  daylight  entered  tho  vil- 
lage. Ho  found  a  wigwam,  by  which  several  beauti- 
ful Indian  girls  were  pounding  ccu'u  in  a  groat  wooden 
mortar.  I  Ic;  sat  down  by  thorn.  1  Ic  could  hardly 
take  his  eyes  from  tlu'ui,  they  wore  so  charming,  and 
they  wondered  at  his  strange  behavior. 

lie  talked  with  them,  and  said,  "My  eyelids 
quiver,  and  by  that  I  know  that  some  groat  and 
strange  news  will  soon  bo  brought  to  this  tribe. 
Hark!"  —  Ikm'o  ho  moved  up  towards  tho  one  whom 
ho  most  admired,  —  "  did  you  not  hoar  a  signal  ?  " 

*'  No,"  they  re})lied. 

The  middle-aged  man  became  very  uneasy.  Sud- 
denly tho  girls  gave  a  cry,  and  dropped  their  corn 
pestles.  A  voice  w\as  heard  afar ;  the  runners  leaped 
and  flew,  the  chiefs  and  people  went  forth.  With 
them  wont  tho  girls  and  the  middle-aged  man,  who 
took  great  pains  to  keep  very  near  his  chosen  one, 
so  as  to  lose  no  time  In  applying  the  remedy  for  the 
pestilence  when  the  Mischief  ]\Iaker  should  give  the 
signal.  He  was  determined  that  a  life  should  not  be 
lost  if  he  could  prevent  it. 


THE   MlCnnV    TALES   OF  LOW  199 

Tlio  Stranger  went  tlirougli  hi.s  story  as  at  the  other 
villa,<;e.  'I  In;  peojdc;  bcicaiue  very  iniuli  t-xeited.  'I  licy 
cried  out  to  know  tlie  renunly,  and  the  old  l)a«Ijelor 
drew  nearer  to  the  i)retty  girl, 

"  The  only  remedy  for  the  jx^stileneo  is  for  every 
woman  to  knock  doiiuh  the  man  who  in  ncarcM  her.^^ 

The  women  began  to  knock  down,  and  the  first  to 
fall  was  the  too  iamiliar  ohl  baehelor.  So  the  Mis- 
chief Maker  waited  no  longfn-  than  to  see  the  whole 
town  in  one  general  and  bitter  figlit,  tooth  and  nail, 
tomaliawk  and  scalper,  and  then  ran  at  the  to[)  of 
his  speed  far  away  and  ileet,  to  iind  another  village. 
Then  the  j)eo})le,  finding  they  had  been  tricked,  said, 
as  pe()})le  generally  do  on  sucli  occasions,  "If  we  had 
that  fellow  here,  would  n't  wo  pay  him  up  for  tliis  ?  " 

The  Mischief  Maker  was  greatly  pleased  at  his  suc- 
cess. It  was  nearly  dark  when  he  stopped,  and  said, 
"  I  will  not  enter  the  next  village  to-night ;  I  will 
camp  hei'c  in  the  woods."  So  he  had  piled  ui>  logs 
for  a  fire,  and  was  just  about  to  strike  a  light,  when 
lie  saw  a  stranger  approaching.  "  C'anip  with  me  hero 
over  night,"  said  tlio  Mischief  Maker,  "  and  we  will 
go  to  the  village  in  the  morning." 

So  they  ate  and  smoked  their  pipes,  and  told  stories 
till  it  was  very  late.  But  the  stranger  did  not  seem 
to  tiro  ;  nay,  he  even  proposed  to  tell  stories  all  night 
long.     The  Mischief  IVIaker  looked  at  him  aslant. 

"  My  friend,"  ho  said,  "  can  you  tell  nie  of  what 
wood  my  back-log  is  ?  " 

Hickory  ?  "  inquired  the  stranger. 


(( 


200  Till':  ALaOMlUIN  LEGENDS, 

"  No,  not  liickory." 

"  Maple  V  " 

"  No,  not  in:ii>U'." 

'*  White  oak?" 

"  No,  not  whito  oak." 

''  lilack  wahmt?" 

"  No,  not  bhu'k  walnut." 

"  Mooscnvtxnl  ?  " 

"  No,  nt)t  niooscwood." 

"Ash?" 

"  No,  not  ash." 

"  rino  ?  " 

"  No,  not  pine." 

"Cedar?" 

"  No,  not  cellar." 

"I^ireh?" 

The  stranger  l)ei;;an  to  yawn,  but  he  ke])t  on  guess- 
ing. Then  his  head  nodded.  r>y  the  time  he  had 
found  out  that  it  was  slipi)ery  elm  he  was  sound 
asleep. 

"This  fellow  deserves  i)unisliment,"  renuivked  tho 
Misehief  jMaker.  "  lie  is  an  enemy  to  maid<ind." 
Here  he  adroitly  jmt  some  sticky  clay  on  the  slee})- 
er's  eyes,  and  departed.  When  the  sti-anger  awoke 
he  thought  himself  still  fast  asleep  in  darkness,  and 
then  that  he  was  blind. 

"  If  ever  I  meet  with  that  fellow  again,"  he  said, 
"I  "11  punish  him!" 

The  jNlischief  IMakcr  played  so  many  pranks  that 
all  the  tribes  sent  out  runners  to  catch  him.    lie  heard 


THE   MI'll'JlY   TALICS   OF  LOW  201 

tlu'ir  wlioops  ill  every  forest.  II(!  kii(!W  tli;it  lie  wjis 
lu-iii;^'  iiiiiited  down.  il(?  Iiiinicd  on,  and  once  at 
nii;lit  lii<l  in  a  cave  und(!r  a  rock.  The  runners  did 
not  (piito  overtake  hiuj,  but  tiicy  saw  that  ins  tra<'ks 
were  fresli,  ami  tlion;;lit  tliey  might  catch  him  in  tlio 
morning.  In  the  morning  lie  was  up  and  far  away 
long  l»ef(H'e  they  awolii!.  Tiie  next  night  lie  Iiid  again 
in  a  hoMow  h»g.  In  the  micklle  of  the  afternoon  of 
the  next  day  In?  heard  the  wiioo])s  of  the  pursuers 
very  near,  an<l  knew  th;it  they  weie  gaining  fast  on 
him.  He  climl)c(l  a  thickly  limbed  tr(!e,  and  hid  in 
the  top.  ller(i  tiu;  runners  lost  his  track,  because  ho 
had  broken  th«'  weeds  and  buslujs  down  Ixiyond  tho 
tree,  as  if  he  had  gone  further  on.  They  ran  for  a 
long  distance.  Then  they  returned,  and  camped  and 
built  a  iire  under  the  tree. 

The  smoke  crept  up  among  the  l)ran(!hes  and  curled 
above,  and  rose  in  a  straight  eolunni  to  the  sky.  The 
fugitive  sailed  away  on  the  smok(!,  going  up  and  uj), 
—  past  beautiful  lakes  and  hunting-grounds  stocked 
with  deer,  large  fields  of  corn  and  l)eans,  tobaccto  and 
S(|uashes  ;  past  great  companies  of  handsome  Indians, 
whose  wigwams  were  hung  full  of  dried  venison  and 
bear's  meat.  And  so  he  went  on  and  up  to  the  wig- 
wam of  the  drcat  Chief. 

Here  he  rested,  lie  remained  for  a  hundi-ed  moons 
observing  the  customs  of  the  peoi)le  and  learning 
their  language.  One  morning  the  (irreat  Chief  told 
him  that  he  nuist  return  to  his  own  people.  lie  dis- 
liked to  do  this,  for  lie  was  very  lia})py  in  the  new 


202  THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

l)lacc.  The  Cliief  said,  "  Those  arc  the  hapi)y  Imnt- 
in;^-<;i'oun(la..  Wc  havo  admitted  you  that  you  may 
know  how  and  wliat  to  teach  your  people,  that  they 
may  get  hero.  Go,  ami  if  you  do  what  1  tell  you,  you 
may  return  to  remain  forever.  You  have  not  been 
allowed  to  come  hero  to  remain,  but  only  to  observe. 
When  you  come  again,  you  shall  join  us  in  all  things. 
You  shall  hunt  and  fish  then,  and  have  whatever  you 
wish.  ]Jut  return  now,  and  teach  what  you  have 
learned  here." 

A  cloud  of  smoke  in  the  form  of  a  great  eagle  canio 
to  him,  and,  seated  on  its  back,  he  was  borne  down 
to  the  top  of  the  tree  from  which  he  had  risen,  lie 
opened  his  eyes.  The  sun  was  shining.  His  pursuers 
had  gone  away.  He  descended  and  traveled  on.  His 
mind  was  filled  with  what  he  had  seen.  He  said,  "  I 
will  no  longer  play  tricks,  but  tell  the  people  about 
what  I  learned  in  the  happy  hunting-grounds." 

After  a  long  journey  he  drew  near  a  village.  He 
gave  the  common  signal.  Kunncrs  came  to  meet  him. 
The  head  chief  and  all  the  people  came  to  hear.  He 
was  asked,  "  What  news  do  you  bring  us  ?  " 

He  said,  "  I  that  was  the  JMischief  Maker  am  the 
Peace  Maker  now.  The  Great  Spirit  took  me  to  the 
happy  hunting-grounds,  and  I  am  sent  back  to  tell 
you  how  to  get  there."  Then  the  Peace  Maker  de- 
scril)ed  all  he  had  seen.  The  pcoi)lo  built  a  great  fire 
and  danced  around  it,  and  shouted  as  they  had  never 
done  before.  Then  lie  said,  ''  This  is  the  message  I 
bring  you." 


THE  Mi^RRY  TALES  OF  LOX.  203 

So  the  i)C()plo  sat  in  a  great  circle  round  the  fire 
and  listened.      He  s[H)ke  :  — 

"  The  Great  S[)irit  is  unseen,  but  he  is  about  us. 
He  will  not  forsake  us.  He  rules  all  thini^s  for  us. 
He  will  take  care  of  us.  He  told  me  tliat  we  should 
return  thanks  to  him,  for  he  changes  the  seasons,  and 
makes  corn  and  beans  and  squashes  grow  for  us.  Ho 
is  displeased  when  we  kill  our  brothers.  He  hopes 
that  we  will  not  forget  him.  He  will  never  die.  His 
name  is  Ifa-mcn-ni-yu^  —  the  Ruler.  He  l)ids  us 
keep  away  from  his  wicked  brother,  whose  name  is 
Ha-nr-fjo-ate-fich^  tlie  Evil-Minded.  He  is  very  bad. 
He  brings  pestilence  and  fevers,  and  lizards  and 
poisonous  weeds.  He  destroys  peace,  and  brings  war. 
Ha-wen-ui-yi  will  care  for  us  if  we  trust  in  him. 
Obey  his  w  irds,  and  Ha-ne-go-ate-geh  will  never 
harm  us. 

"  The  Great  Spirit,  has  messengers,  who  aid  him  in 
his  work.  They  watch  over  the  peo^de.  They  take 
care  of  the  mother  and  her  new-born  babe,  that  they 
receive  no  harm ;  they  watch  over  those  whom  the 
Evil-^NIinded  has  troubled  with  disease.  The  Evil- 
Minded  has  messengers  who  do  his  work.  They  scat- 
ter pestilence,  and  whisper  in  our  ears,  and  tell  us 
to  go  against  Ha-wen-ni-yu. 

"  The  Great  Si)irit  has  messengers.  Hcno  has  a 
pouch  filled  with  thunderbolts.  Heno  gathers  the 
clouds  and  sends  the  rain.  He  is  a  friend  to  the  corn 
and  beans  and  squashes.  He  also  punishes  witches 
and  evil  persons.     Pray  to  Heno  when  you  plant,  and 


204      THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

tliank  yum  when  you  j^ather  your  cro]).  Pray  also 
to  Ihi  wi'ii-ni-yu,  wlu)  will  Ht'Uil  llono  to  caro  for  you. 
Lot  liouo  bo  i-alltul  (irandtiitlier. 

"Ga-oli  is  tho  Spirit  of  tlio  Winds.  IIo  moves  the 
winds,  but  ho  is  chained  to  a  rock.  The  win<ls  trouble 
him,  and  ho  tries  very  hard  to  get  froo.  A\'lu'u  ho 
struggles  tho  winds  are  forced  away  fiom  him,  and 
they  blow  u|)on  the  earth.  Sometimes  ho  suilVu's 
terrible  })ain,  and  th^m  his  struggles  are  violent.  This 
makes  tho  winds  wild,  and  tiiey  do  damage  ou  tho 
earth.  Then  lu;  feels  better  and  goes  to  sleep,  and  tho 
winds  become  quiet  also. 

"  There  is  a  spirit  for  tho  corn,  anotlier  for  beans, 
another  for  scpiashes.  They  aro  sisters,  and  arc  very 
kind  to  eacdi  other.  Th(!y  dwell  together,  and  live  in 
the  fields.  Tliey  shall  be  known  as  De-o-ha-ka.,  —  tho 
keepers  of  our  life. 

"  There  aro  spirits  in  the  water,  in  fire,  in  all  the 
trees  and  berries,  in  herbs  and  in  tobacco,  in  the  grass. 
They  assist  the  Great  Spirit. 

"  Always  return  thanks  to  Ilo-noh-che-noh-kch^  the 
Guardian  Spirits. 

"  Ila-nc-rio-atG-geh  has  messengers.  These  are  tho 
spirits  of  disease,  of  fever,  of  ^sitches,  weeds,  and 
nnirdcr.  But  the  Great  Spirit  will  keep  them  away 
from  liis  children. 

"  This  is  the  message  I  bring  from  the  happy  hunt- 
ing-groruds.  Obey  these  words,  and  th<;  Great 
Spirit  will  give  you  a  place  there." 

So  Peace  Maker  taught  the  people.     They  threw 


THE  MEIUIY  TALES  OF  LOX.  205 

tolmcco  on  tlio  (iro,  ivccorditi^  to  his  instnictlouH,  and 
on  tlu!  foluiim  of  its  siuoUo  lio  was  borne  away  to  the 
liappy  Iiiintin;;-i;i'oun(l.s.  And  the  iH'oplu  danced  and 
Hanj^  around  the  «l)in<^  embers  of  the  council  iiro. 

This  is  pi'obably  an  anci«'nt  legend  with  a  niodci-n 
moral.  The  idea  (►f  an  Indian  Tyl  Kulenspiegel 
going  about  tlie  country  making  niiscliief  recalls  a 
great  i)avt  of  the  adventures  of  Hiawatha  or  Mano- 
bozho;  in  fact,  it  could  not  fail  to  suggest  itself  to  a 
believer  in  Shamanism,  or  pow-wow,  aec(mling  to 
which  evil  s])irits  and  men  like  them  are  continually 
teasing  mankind,  out  of  sheer  malice.  The  reform  of 
the  wicked  man,  under  the  inlluenee  of  the  ''(ireat 
Spirit,"  is  of  later  days.  I  do  not  believe  that  the 
idea  of  a  (ireat  Sjiirit,  in  the  sense  in  wlii(;h  it  is 
generally  used  by  Indians,  or  is  attributed  to  them, 
was  ever  known  till  learned  from  the  whites.  Noth- 
ing is  more  natural  than  that  during  the  two  hundred 
years  past  intelligent  Indians,  who  felt  that  there  were 
many  evils  in  the  old  barbaric  state,  yet  who  were  still 
under  the  influence  of  its  myths  and  poetry,  should 
have  made  up  legends  like  this  purporting  to  be  revela- 
tions. There  is  one  of  the  kind  given  in  the  Hiawatha 
Legend,  as  ""  Eroneniera,  an  Indian  visit  to  the  Great 
Spirit,"  which  bears  on  its  face  ever}'  mark  of  modern 
manufacture  for  a  purpose.  For  these  very  reasons, 
however,  the  tale  hero  given  is  of  great  interest  to  the 
impartial  historian.  I  am  indebted  for  it  to  the  kind- 
ness of  Colonel  T.  Wcntworth  Iligginson.  This  is 
the  only  story  in  my  collection  of  which  I  cannot  give 


206  rilE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

the  name  and  residence  of  the  original  Indian  nar- 
rator. 

In  the  first  part  we  have  in  the  Mischief  Maker 
the  same  character  or  principle  who  apjicars  as  Lox, 
the  Wolverine,  the  Kaccoon,  and  Badger  among  the 
AVabanaki.  The  setting  the  blind  women  together  by 
the  ears,  and  the  dashing  of  hot  pndding,  soup,  or  water 
in  their  faces,  is  anotlier  form  of  a  Lox  story,,  which 
occurs  again  in  the  Kalevala.  But  the  entire  spirit  of 
the  tricks  is  that  of  Lox,  as  those  of  Lox  are  like 
those  of  Loki.  The  Rev.  D.  ]\Ioncure  Conway  once 
said  to  me,  as  ]Miss  E.  Kobins  has  also  said  in  an 
article  in  the  Atlantic  Monthly,  that  it  is  only  in  the 
Norse  mythology  that  the  Evil  One,  or  devil,  is  repre- 
sented [IS  growing  up  from  or  inspired  solely  by  reck- 
less w^anton  mhchlcf.,  —  the  miscliief  of  a  bad  boy  or 
a  monkey.  But  the  very  same  is  as  true  of  so  much 
of  a  devil  iis  there  is  in  the  Wabanaki  mythology.  It 
is  as  a  grotesque  shadow  of  Loki,  but  still  it  is  his. 
The  Germans  say  the  devil  is  God's  ape  ;  the  Indian 
Lox  is  the  Norse  devil's. 

IIow  Lox  told  a  Lie. 
(PassanirKpioddy.) 

Lox  had  a  brother,  who  had  married  a  red  squaw. 
When  she  was  touched  the  red  color  rubbed  off.  The 
brother  kejit  this  wife  in  a  box. 

One  day,  returning,  the  brotlier  saw  that  Lox  had 
red  fingers.  "  Aha  !  "  he  cried,  in  a  rage,  "  you  have 
taken  my  wife  out  of  the  box."  But  Lox  denied  it, 
so  that  his  brother  believed  him. 


THE  MERRY  TALES   OF  LOX.  207 

The  next  time  the  husband  returned,  Lox's  finirers 
were  again  red.  And  a_:j;aiu  he  was  accused,  and  once 
more  he  denied  it.  liut  as  lie  swore  with  all  his 
might  that  he  was  innocent,  something,  as  if  on  the 
floor,  hiughcd,  and  said,  ''  You  lie.  I  was  with  you  ; 
I  helped  you." 

Lox  thought  it  was  his  right  foot.  So  he  cut  off  the 
toes,  and  then  the  foot,  hut  the  accusation  continued. 
Thinking  it  was  the  other  foot,  he  cut  that  off ;  yet  as 
the  testimony  was  continued,  he  found  that  it  was  Ta- 
loosr,  even  he  himself,  the  bodily  offender  in  person, 
testifying  against  his  lying  soul.  So  in  a  rage  ho 
struck  himself  such  a  blow  with  his  war-club  that  he 
fell  dead. 

I  cannot  give  in  full  all  the  adventures  of  Loa.     I 

may,  however,  observe  one  thing  of  great  importance. 

Lox,  in  these  tales,    is  the  Evil  Princi})le,  that  is,  a 

giant  by  birth.     Ilis  two  feet  in  this  story  are  male 

and  female  ;  thoy  talk  as  if  they  were  human.    In  the 

Edda,  a  giant's  two  feet  beget  together  a  six-headed 

son  (Vafthrudnismal)  ;  — 

"  Foot  with  foot  begot 
Of  that  wise  .[(ititn, 
A  six-headed  sua." 

This  six-headed  son  renpj)ears  as  a  demon  in  the 
Passamaquoddy  tale  of  tl;e  Three  Strong  I\Ien. 

Tuloosc,  literally  translated,  is  the  phallus.  The 
red  squaw  refers  to  the  Newfoundland  Indians,  cov- 
ered with  red  ochre.  They  are  believed  to  be  now 
extinct. 


THE  AMAZING  ADVENTURES  OF  MASTER 

RABBIT 

WITH  THE  OTTER,  THE  WOODPECKEIl   GIRLS,  AND   MOOIX 

THE  15EAK. 

ALSO   A   FULL   ACCOUNT    OF   TIIK   FAMOUS   CIIASK,   IN   WHICH    UK 
FOOLKI)   LUSIFKK,   TIIK    WILD   CAT, 

/.  Ifow  blaster  llahhlt  sourjld  to  ruml  Keeoony,  the 

Otter. 

Or  old  times,  Jfuhtigicess^  the  Rabl)it,  who  Is 
called  in  the  Micniac  tongue  Ahlcrgumooch.,  lived 
witli  his  grandmother,  waiting  for  better  times ;  and 
truly  he  found  it  a  hard  matter  in  midwinter,  when 
ice  was  on  the  river  and  snow  was  on  the  plain,  to 
provide  even  for  his  small  household.  And  running 
through  the  forest  one  day  he  found  a  lonely  wigwam, 
and  he  that  dwelt  therein  was  Keeoony^  the  Otter. 
The  lodge  was  on  the  bank  of  a  river,  and  a  smooth 
road  of  ice  slanted  from  the  door  down  to  the  water. 
And  the  Otter  made  him  welcome,  and  directed  his 
housekeeper  to  get  ready  to  cook;  saying  which,  ho 
took  the  hooks  on  which  he  was  wont  to  string  fish 
when  he  had  thorn,  and  went  to  fetch  a  mess  for  din- 
ner. Placing  hiuLself  on  the  top  of  the  slide,  he 
coasted  in  and  under  the  water,  and  then  came  out 


ADVENTUllKS   OF  MASTEll   RADBIT.      209 

with  a  grout  bunch  of  eels,  wliicli  were  soon  cooked, 
and  on  which  tlioy  dhied. 

"  r.y  my  lii'i',"  tliought  Master  Rahhit,  "  but  that 
is  an  easy  way  of  getthig  ii  living  I  Truly  tliese  lisli- 
ing-folk  have  fine  fare,  and  elieai) !  Cannot  I,  who 
am  so  clever,  do  as  well  as  this  mere  Otter?  Of 
course  I  can.  Why  not?"  Thereupon  he  grew  so 
confident  of  hiinseli:"  as  to  invite  the  Otter  to  dine  with 
him  —  (fd(//nad((f<k  ketLxirop  —  on  the  third  day  after 
that,  and  so  went  home. 

"  Come  on  I  "  he  said  to  his  grandmother  the  next 
morning ;  "  let  us  remove  our  wigwam  down  to  the 
lake."  So  they  removed  ;  and  he  selected  a  site  such 
as  the  Otter  had  chosen  for  his  home,  and  the  weather 
being  C(dd  he  made  a  road  of  ice,  or  a  cojist,  down 
from  his  door  to  the  water,  and  all  was  well.  Then 
the  guest  came  at  the  time  set,  and  Kabbit,  calling  his 
grandmother,  bade  her  get  ready  to  cook  a  dinner. 
"  l>ut  w^hat  am  I  to  cook,  gi'andson  ?  "  inquired  the 
old  dame. 

"  Truly  I  will  see  to  that,"  said  he,  and  made  him 
a  7iahof/un,  or  stick  to  string  eels.  Then  going  to  the 
ice  path,  he  tried  to  slide  like  one  skilled  in  the  art, 
but  indeed  with  little  luclc,  for  he  went  first  to  the 
right  side,  then  to  the  left,  and  so  hitched  and  jumped 
till  he  came  to  the  wnter,  where  he  went  in  with  a 
bob  backwards.  And  this  l)'ul  beginning  had  no  bet- 
ter ending,  since  of  all  swinuners  and  divers  the  Rab- 
bit is  the  very  worst,  and  this  one  was  no  })etter  than 
his  brothers.     The  water  was  cold,  he  lost  his  breath, 

he  struggled,  and  was  wull-nigh  drowned. 
U 


210  THE  AiaONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

"  But  what  on  cartli  ails  tlio  follow  ?  "  said  the  Ot- 
ter to  the  graiKluiother,  who  was  looking  on  in  amaze- 
ment. 

"  W^ell,  he  has  seen  somebody  do  something,  and  is 
trying  to  do  likewise,"  re])lied  the  old  lady. 

"  J  lo !  come  out  of  that  now,"  cried  the  Otter, 
"and  hand  mo  your  nrthof/imf  "  And  the  })Oor  ilab- 
l)it,  shivering  with  cold,  and  almost  frozen,  came  from 
the  water  and  limped  into  the  lodge.  And  there  he 
required  nuich  nursing  from  his  grandmother,  while 
the  Otter,  plunging  into  the  stream,  soon  returned 
with  a  load  of  lish.  l?ut,  disgusted  at  the  Rabbit 
for  attemi)ting  what  he  could  not  perform,  he  threw 
them  down  as  a  gift,  and  went  home  without  tasting 
the  meal. 

//.  iroia  Mahflf/icess,  the  J^ahhit  dined  with  the  Wood- 
2wrJ:er  Girls,  and  was  again  humhled  h>j  trijimj  to  rival 
them. 

Now  Master  Rabbit,  though  disap})oiutod,  was  not 
discouraged,  for  this  one  virtue  he  had,  that  he  nover 
gave  u}!.^  And  wandering  one  day  in  the  wilderness, 
he  found  a  wigwam  well  filled  with  vouns;  women,  all 
wearing  red  liead-dresscs ;  and  no  wonder,  for  they 
were  AVoodi)eckers.  Now,  IMaster  Rabbit  was  a  well- 
bred  Indian,  who  made  himself  as  a  melody  to  all 
voices,  and  so  he  was  cheerfully  bidden  to  bide  to  din- 
ner, which  he  did.     Then  one  of  the  red-})olled  pretty 

^  It  will  be  seen  in  the  end  that  this  j^reat  Indian  virtue  of 
never  j^jiving  in  eventually  raised  liabbit  to  power  and  prosper- 
ity.   //  y  a  de  morale  id. 


ADVENTURES   OF  MASTER   RABHIT.       211 

girls,  taking  a  icoltcs,  or  wooden  dish,  liglitly  climbed 
.1  tree,  so  that  she  seemed  to  run  ;  and  whih'  ascend- 
ing, stoj)i)iug  liere  and  there  and  tai)ping  now  and 
then,  took  from  this  phicc  and  that  many  of  those  in- 
sects called  by  the  Indians  <(j)chel-7ii<)(il-tunpk(nr(il^  or 
rice,  because  they  so  nnich  reseml)le  it.  And  note 
that  this  rice  is  a  dainty  dish  for  those  who  like  it. 
And  when  it  was  boiled,  and  they  had  dined,  Master 
Ixabbit  again  reflected,  "  La  !  how  easily  some  folks 
live !  What  is  to  hinder  \\\c  from  (hnnii'  the  same  ? 
IIo,  you  girls  !  come  over  and  dine  with  mc  the  day 
after  to-rnorrow !  " 

And  having  accepted  this  invitation,  all  the  guests 
came  on  the  day  set,  when  Master  Kabbit  inulertook 
to  play  woodpecker.  So  having  taken  the  head  of  an 
eel-spear  and  fastened  it  to  his  nose  to  make  a  bill,  ho 
climbed  as  well  as  he  could  —  and  bad  was  the  best  — 
up  a  tree,  and  tried  to  get  his  harvest  of  rice.  Truly 
he  got  none  ;  (mly  in  this  did  he  succeed  in  resem- 
bling a  Woodpecker,  that  he  had  a  red  poll ;  for  his 
pate  was  all  torn  and  bleeding,  bruised  by  the  lishing- 
jioint.  And  the  pretty  birds  all  looked  and  laughed, 
and  wondered  what  the  Kabbit  was  about. 

"Ah !  "  said  his  grandmother,  "  I  suppose  he  is 
trying  again  to  do  sonu^thing  which  he  has  seen  some 
one  do.     'T  is  just  like  him." 

"Oh,  come  down  there!  "  cried  Miss  "Woodpecker, 
as  well  as  she  could  for  huighing.  "Oive  me  your 
dish !  "  And  having  got  it  she  scampered  up  tho 
trunk,  and.  soon  brought  down  a  dinner.     But  it  was 


212  THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

lone:   ere   Master    Eabblt    heanl  the  last  of  it  from 
these  gay  tree-tappers. 

III.  Of  the  AiUenture  with  Monlri,  the  Bear ;  it  heiny 
the  Third  and  Last  Time  that  Master  lUibbit  vitule  a 
Fool  of  himself. 

Now,  truly,  one  would  think  that  after  all  that  had 
befallen  Master  3Iahti(/wc}^.%  the  lial)bit,  that  he 
wouLl  have  had  enough  of  trying  other  people's 
trades  ;  but  his  nature  was  such  that,  having  on(!e 
set  his  mighty  mind  to  a  thing,  little  short  of  sudden 
death  would  cure  him.  And  being  one  day  with  the 
Bear  in  his  cave,  he  beheld  with  great  wonder  how 
Mooiti  fed  his  folk.  For,  having  put  a  gi-eat  pot  on 
the  fire,  he  did  l)ut  cut  a  little  slice  from  his  own  foot 
and  drop  it  into  tlie  boiling  water,  when  it  spread 
and  grew  into  a  mess  of  meat  which  served  for  all.^ 
Nay,  there  was  a  great  piece  given  to  Rabbit  to  take 
home  to  feed  his  family. 

"  Now,  truly,'"  he  said,  "  this  is  a  thing  which  I  can 
indeed  do.  Is  it  not  recorded  in  the  family  wampum 
that  whatever  a  Bear  can  do  well  a  Rabbit  can  do  bet- 
ter?" So,  in  fine,  he  invited  his  friend  to  come  and 
dine  witli  him,  Kcthompl' ,  the  day  after  to-morrow. 

And  the  Bear  being  there,  Rabbit  did  but  say, 
'''■  jVoor/iime'  huesmcaV  n'ohu/'^  "Grandmother,  set 
your  pot  to  boiling !  "     And,  whetting  his  knife  on  a 

1  Mr.  Riuid  obsiTvos  that  this  is  evidently  an  alhision  to  the 
bear's  being  supposed  to  live  during  the  winter  by  sucking  liis 
own  paws. 


ADVENTURES  OF  MASTER   RABBIT.      213 

stone,  ho  tried  to  do  as  tlio  B»nir  had  done ;  but  little 
did  he  get  from  his  small,  thin  solos,  though  he  eut 
himself  madly  and  sadly. 

"What  ean  he  be  trying  to  do?"  growled  tlie 
guest. 

"Ah  !  "  sighed  the  grandmother,  "  something  which 
he  has  seen  some  one  else  do." 

"  Ilo !  I  say  there!  Give  nic  the  knife,"  quoth 
Bruin.  And,  getting  it,  he  took  a  slice  from  his  sole, 
wliich  did  him  no  harm,  and  then,  wliat  with  magic 
and  fire,  gave  them  a  good  dinner.  Ihit  Master  Rab- 
bit was  in  sad  case,  and  it  was  many  a  day  eie  he 
got  well. 

IV.  Jxelatbujhow  the  Bahhlt  became  Wise  hij  being  Ongi- 
nal,  and  of  the  Terrible  Tricks  which  lie  by  Magic  2^1" jed 
Lonji-Cervier,  the  Wicked  Wild  Cat. 

There  are  men  who  are  bad  at  copying,  yet  are  good 
originals,  and  of  this  kind  was  Master  Rabbit,  who, 
when  he  gave  up  trying  to  do  as  otliers  did,  succeeded 
very  w^ell.  And,  having  found  out  his  foible,  he  ap- 
])lied  himself  to  become  able  in  good  earnest,  and  stud- 
ied niteonliii.f  or  magic,  so  severely  that  in  time  he 
grew  to  be  an  awful  conjurer,  so  that  he  could  riuse 
ghosts,  crops,  storms,  or  devils  whenever  ho  wanted 
tliem.^     For  he  had  perseverance,  and  out  of  this  may 

^  The  three  previous  ehapters  of  the  Rabbit  legend  arc  from 
the  Mieniae.  The  rest  is  Passaiinujiioddy,  as  told  by  Toniali  Jo- 
sephs, who  in  his  narration  not  only  often  interi)ohited  joeose  re- 
marks, but  was  wout  to  ejaenhite  "  liy  -lolly  !  "  espeeially  in  the 
most  striking  scenes.  I  think  that  with  hiiii  the  interjection  had 
become  reHned  and  digniiied. 


214  THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

coine  uiiything,  if  it  be  only  brought  into  the  right 
road. 

Now  it  came  to  i)ass  that  Master  Ivabbit  got  into 
gi'cat  trouble.  The  records  of  the  Micniacs  say  that  it 
was  from  his  stealing  a  string  of  fish  from  the  Otter, 
who  i)ursued  him  ;  but  the  I'assamaquoddies  dechire 
that  he  was  innocent  of  this  evil  deed,  i)r()))ably  be- 
cause they  make  great  accourit  of  him  as  their  ances- 
tor and  as  the  father  of  the  A\^ibanaki.  llowbcit, 
this  is  the  way  in  which  they  tell  the  tale. 

Now  the  Ivabbit  is  the  natural  prey  of  the  Lou])- 
Cervier,  or  Lusifeo,  who  is  a  kiiid  of  wild  cat,  none 
being  more  obstinate.  And  tliis  ^^'ild  Cat  once  went 
hunting  with  a  gang  of  wolves,  and  they  got  nothing. 
Then  AVild  Cat,  who  had  made  them  great  promises 
and  acted  as  chief,  became  angry,  and,  thinking  of  the 
Kabbit,  promised  them  that  this  time  they  should  in- 
deed get  their  dinner.  So  he  took  them  to  Rabbit's 
wigwam ;  but  he  was  out,  and  the  A^"olves,  being  vexed 
and  starved,  reviled  AVild  Cat,  and  then  ru-shed  olf 
howling  through  the  woods. 

Now  I  think  that  the  Ivabbit  is  mteoidin.  Yes, 
he  nuist  be,  for  when  Wild  Cat  started  to  hunt  liim 
alone,  he  determined  with  all  his  soid  not  to  be  caught, 
and  made  himself  as  maiiieal  as  he  I'ould.  So  he 
picked  uj)  a  handful  of  ehi})s,  and  tlu'cw  one  as  far  as 
possible,  then  jumped  to  it,  —  for  he  had  a  charm  for 
a  long  jump  ;  and  tiien  threw  another,  and  so  on,  for  a 
great  distance.  This  was  to  make  no  tracks,  and  when 
he  thought  he  had  got  out  of  scent  and  sight  and 
sound  he  scampered  iiway  like  the  wind. 


THE    RABBIT    MAGICIAN. 


ADVENTURES   OF  MASTER   R AUDIT.       215 

Now,  as  I  said,  when  tho  wolves  got  to  Master  Ral>- 
bit's  liouso  and  found  nothing,  tlioy  smelt  ahout  and 
left  AVild  Cat,  who  swore  by  his  tail  that  ho  woidd 
catch  UaV)bit,  if  he  had  to  hunt  forever  and  run  him- 
self to  death.  So,  taking  the  house  for  a  cei\tre,  ho 
kept  going  round  and  round  it,  all  the  time  a  little 
further,  and  so  more  around  and  still  further.'  Then 
at  last  having  found  the  track,  he  went  in  hot  hasto 
aftir  Mr.  liabbit.  And  both  ran  hard,  till,  night 
coming  on,  JIabbit,  to  j)rotect  himself,  had  only  just 
time  to  trample  down  the  snow  a  little^  (uul  stick  up 
a  S2>t'uce  twltj  on  end  and  sit  on  it.  But  when  ^Vild 
Cat  came  up  he  found  there  a  fine  wigwam,  and  put 
his  head  in.  All  that  he  saw  was  an  old  man  of 
very  grave  and  dignified  ap})earance,  whose  hair  was 
gray,  and  whose  majestic  {sor/jnof/e')  appearance  was 
heightened  by  a  i)air  of  long  and  venerable  cars.  And 
of  him  Wild  Cat  asked  in  a  gasi)ing  hurry  if  he  had 
seen  a  Kabbit  running  that  way. 

"  Rabbits  I "  replied  the  old  man.  "  AVhy,  of  course 
I  have  seen  many.  They  abound  in  the  woods  about 
here.  I  see  dozens  of  them  every  day."  With  this 
he  said  kindly  to  AVild  Cat  that  he  had  better  tarry 
with  him  for  a  time.  "  I  am  an  old  man,"  he  re- 
marked with  solenmity,  —  '"'  an  old  man,  living  alone, 

^  While  telling  tliis,  Toinah  dcsoiibod  a  spiral  line.  It  is  evi- 
dent that  If  the  volute  were  only  continued  long  enough  it  must 
inevitably  end  iu  finding  any  trail,  it"  tlie  point  of  departure  Ito 
only  know^n.  This  device  is  familiar  to  all  Indians,  and  it  is 
mentioned  iu  other  stories. 


210      THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

and  a  rcs])cetable  <;uest,  like  you,  sir,  comes  to  nio  like 
a  ]>l(>ssiny."  \\\A  tliu  Cat,  greatly  iiiipresstid,  ro- 
iiialiu'd.  After  a  good  supper  ho  lay  down  hy  tlio 
fire,  and,  liaviug  run  all  day,  was  at  onco  asleei),  and 
made  but  one  nap  of  it  till  morning.  But  how  aston- 
ished, and  oh,  how  miserahlo  ho  was,  when  he  awoke, 
to  llnd  himself  on  the  open  heath  in  the  snow  and  al- 
most starved!  The  wind  blow  as  if  it  liad  a  keen  will 
to  kill  liiin  ;  it  seemed  to  go  all  through  his  bo(ly. 
Then  he  saw  that  he  had  been  a  fool  and  cheated  l)y 
magic,  and  in  a  rage  swore  again  l»y  his  teeth,  as  well 
as  his  tail,  that  the  Ivabbit  sliouhl  die.  There  was  no 
hut  now,  only  the  trampled  snow  and  a  spruce  twig, 
and  yet  out  of  this  little.  Rabbit  had  conjured  up  so 
great  a  delusion. 

Then  he  ran  again  all  day.  And  when  night  came, 
Master  Rabbit,  having  a  little  more  time  than  before, 
again  tranijJed  down  the  snow,  l)ut  for  a  greater  space, 
and  strewed  many  branches  all  about,  for  now  a  Imge 
effort  was  to  be  made.  And  when  AVild  Cat  got  there 
he  found  a  great  Indian  village,  with  crowds  of  people 
going  to  and  fro.  The  first  building  he  saw  was  a 
church,  in  which  service  was  being  held.  And  he,  en- 
tering, said  hastily  to  the  first  i)erson  he  saw,  "  Ha ! 
ho  !  have  you  seen  a  Rabbit  numing  by  here  ?  " 

"  Hush  —  sh,  sh  !  "  replied  the  man.  "  You  must 
wait  till  meeting  is  over  before  asking  such  ques- 
tions." ^    Tlien  a  young  man  beckoned  to  him  to  come 

^  Though  tliis  slDi'y  is  very  okl,  the  incident  of  the  church 
(soymoye  loiywain,  or  chief  house)  is  niiuiifestly  moderu. 


ADVENTUIIKS   OF  MAST/JIi   RADniT.      217 

in,  and  ho  listcncMl  till  tlio  ond  fo  a  lonj^  sonnon  on  tho 
wickedness  of  boinp;  vindictive  and  rapacious  ;  and  tho 
preailjci-  was  a  jjjray  ancient,  and  his  ears  stood  up 
over  liis  little  cap  like  tho  two  handles  of  a  pitcher, 
yet  for  all  that  the  VVihl  Cat's  heart  was  \v>t  moved 
one  whit.  And  wluMi  it  was  all  at  an  end  he  said  to 
the  oMi<«ing  youn^-  man,  "  Ikit  have  you  seen  a  \i\\\h 
hit  I'uuning"  hy  ?  " 

"  Kahhits!  Ual)-l)its  I  "  replied  the  younn;  man. 
"Why,  there  are  hundj'cds  racinjjf  about  in  the  cedar 
swamps  near  this  phiee,  and  you  can  have  as  many  as 
you  want."  "  Ah !  "  replied  \\M  (at,  "  but  they  aro 
not  what  I  s;'ek.  ISIine  is  an  entirely  diifercnt  kind." 
Tho  other  said  that  he  knew  of  no  sort  save  tho  wild 
wood  -  rabbits,  but  that  perhaps  their  (iovcrnor,  or 
Chief,  who  was  very  wise,  couki  tell  him  all  about  tlu^m. 
Then  tho  Governor,  or  Sagamore,  came  up.  Like;  tho 
preacher,  he  was  very  remaikablc^  and  gray,  with  tho 
long  kuiks  standing  up  one  on  either  side  of  his  head. 
And  he  invited  the  stranger  to  his  house,  where  his 
two  very  beautiful  daughters  cooked  him  a  fine  sup- 
per. And  when  he  wished  to  retire  they  brought  out 
blankets  and  a  beautiful  frhife  hea/s  sli/i,  and  made 
u})  a  bed  for  liim  by  the  fire.  Ti-uly,  his  eyes  were 
closed  as  soon  as  ho  lay  down,  but  when  he  awoke 
there  had  been  a  great  change.  For  now  he  was  in  a 
wet  cedar  sw\amp,  the  wind  blowing  ten  times  worse 
than  over,  and  his  sup]>er  and  slcu'p  had  done  him  little 
good,  for  they  were  all  a  di'lusion.  All  around  him 
were  rabbits'  tracks  and  broken  twigs,  but  nothing 
more. 


218  THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

Yet  he  sprang  up,  more  enraged  than  ever,  and 
swearing  more  terribly  by  his  tail,  teeth,  and  claws 
that  he  would  be  revenged.  So  he  ran  on  all  day,  and 
at  night,  when  he  came  to  another  large  village,  he  was 
so  weary  that  he  could  just  gasp,  "Have  —  you  — 
seen  a  Kab  —  bit  run  this  way  ?  "  With  much  con- 
cern and  kindness  they  all  asked  him  what  was  the 
matter.  So  he  told  them  all  this  story,  and  they 
pitied  him  very  much;  yea,  one  gray  old  man,  —  and 
this  was  the  Chief,  —  with  two  beautiful  daughters, 
shed  tears  and  comforted  him,  and  advised  him  to 
stay  with  them.  So  they  took  him  to  a  large  hall, 
where  there  was  a  great  fire  burning  in  the  middle 
thereof.  And  over  it  hung  two  pots  with  soup  and 
meat,  and  two  Indians  stood  by  and  gave  food  to  all 
the  people.  And  he  had  his  share  with  the  rest,  and 
all  feasted  gayly. 

Now,  when  they  had  done  eating,  the  old  Governor, 
who  was  very  gray,  and  from  either  side  of  whose 
head  rose  two  very  venerable,  long  white  feathers,  rose 
to  welcome  the  stranger,  and  in  a  long  speech  said  it 
was,  indeed,  the  custom  of  their  village  to  entertain 
guests,  but  that  they  expected  from  them  a  song. 
Then  Wild  Cat,  who  was  vain  of  his  voice,  uplifted  it 
in  vengeance  against  the  liabbits :  — 

«  Oil,  licw  I  hate  them  ! 
How  I  despise  them  ! 
How  I  I:iii<;h  at  them  ! 
May  I  sealp  them  all !  " 

Then  he  said  that  he  thought  the  Governor  should 


ADVENTURES   OF  MASTER   RADDIT.      219 

sing.  Aiul  to  this  the  Chief  consented,  but  dochired 
tluit  all  who  were  present  should  bow  their  heads  while 
seated,  and  shut  their  eyes,  whieli  they  did.  Then 
Cliief  liabl)it,  at  one  bound,  cleared  the  heads  of  his 
<;uests,  and  drawing  his  t'lmhcijcn^  or  tomahawk,  as  ho 
jumped,  gave  Wild  Cat  a  wound  which  cut  deeply  into 
liis  head,  and  only  fell  short  of  killing  him  by  entirely 
stunning  him.  Wlien  he  recovered,  he  was  again  in 
snow,  slush,  and  filth,  more  starved  than  ever,  his  head 
bleeding  from  a  dreadful  blow,  and  he  himself  almost 
dead.  Yet,  with  all  that,  the  Indian  devil  was  stronger 
in  him  than  ever,  for  every  new  disgrace  did  but  bring 
more  resolve  to  be  revenged,  and  he  swore  it  by  his 
tail,  claws,  teeth,  and  eyes. 

So  he  tottered  along,  though  he  could  hardly  walk ; 
nor  could  he,  indeed,  go  very  far  that  day.  And  when 
almost  broken  down  with  })ain  and  weariness,  he  came 
about  noon  to  two  good  wigwams.  Looking  into  one, 
ho  saw  a  gray-haired  old  man,  and  in  the  other  a 
young  gir],  a})})arently  his  dartghter.  And  they  re- 
ceived him  kindly,  and  listened  to  his  story,  saying- 
it  was  very  sad,  the  old  man  declaring  that  ho  must 
really  remain  there,  and  that  he  would  get  him  a  doc- 
tor, since,  unless  he  were  well  cared  for  at  once,  he 
would  die.  Then  he  went  fortli  as  if  in  great  con- 
cern, leaving  his  daughter  to  nurse  the  weary,  wounded 
stranger. 

Now,  when  the  Doctor  came,  he,  too,  was  an  old 
gray  man,  witli  a  scalp-lock  strangely  divided  like  two 
horns.     But  the  Wild  Cat  had  become  a  little  suspi- 


220  THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

cious,  having  been  so  often  deceived,  for  much  abuse 
will  cease  to  anuise  even  the  most  innocent ;  and  truly 
lie  was  none  of  tliese.  And,  looking' t^rindy  at  the  Doc- 
tor,^ he  said:  "  I  was  asking  if  any  Kal)l)its  are  here, 
and  truly  you  loolc  very  nuich  like  one  youisolf.  How 
did  you  get  that  split  nose?  "  "  Oh,  that  is  very  sim- 
ple," replied  the  old  man.  "  Once  I  was  hanunering 
wampmn  beads,  and  the  stone  on  which  I  beat  them 
broke  in  lialves,  and  one  piece  flew  up,  and,  as  you  see, 
split  my  nose."  "  Uut,"  persisted  the  W^ild  Cat,  "  why 
are  the  soles  of  your  feet  so  yellow,  even  like  a  Ivab- 
bit's?"  "  Ah,  that  is  because  I  have  been  preparing 
some  tobacco,  and  I  had  to  hold  it  down  with  my 
feet,  for,  truly,  I  nedeed  both  my  hands  to  work  with. 
So  the  tobacco  stained  them  yellow."  Then  the  Wild 
Cat  suspected  no  more,  and  the  Doctor  put  salve  on 
his  wound,  so  that  he  felt  much  better,  and,  ere  he  de- 
parted, put  by  him  a  platter  of  very  delicate  little 
round  biscuits,  or  rolls,  and  a  beautiful  pitcher  full 
of  nice  wine,  and  bade  him  refresh  himself  from 
tliese  during  the  night,  and  so,  stealing  away  softly, 
lie  departed. 

But  oh,  the  wretchedness  of  the  awaking  in  the 
morning!  For  then  A\  ild  Cat  found  himself  indeed 
in  the  extreme  of  misery.  Ilis  hea<I  was  swollen  and 
aching  to  an  incredible  degree,  and  the  horrible  wound, 
which  was  gaj)ing  wide,  had   been  stuffed  with  hem- 

^  This  cross-examination  of  the  Doctor  is  taken  from  an  Abe- 
naki version,  narrati'd  l»y  a  St.  Francis  Indian  to  Miss  Alger. 
Thia  Indian  is  the  well-known  Josep  Cappino. 


ADVENTURES  OF  MASTER   RAUBTT.       221 

lock  needles  and  i)ine  spl Intel's,  and  this  was  the  cool 
salve  which  the  Doctor  luid  ai)plled.  And  as  a  last 
tonch  to  his  rage  and  shame,  tlunking  in  liis  deadly 
tliirst  of  tlie  wine,  lie  beheld  on  the  ground,  still  left 
in  the  snow,  a  last  smnnicr's  pitcher-plant,  half  full 
of  what  might  indeed  pass  for  wine  by  the  mere  sight 
thereof,  though  hardly  to  the  taste.  While  seeking  for 
the  biscuits  on  a  platter,  he  found  only  certain  small 
pellets,  such  as  abound  aljout  a  rabbit  warren.  And 
then  he  swore  by  all  his  body  and  soul  that  he  would 
slay  the  next  being  he  met.  Rabbit  or  Indian.  Verily 
this  time  he  would  be  utterly  revenged. 

Now  Mahtigwess,  the  liahbit,  had  almost  come  to  an 
end  of  his  fntrouU/i,  or  wizard  power,  for  that  time, 
yet  he  had  still  enough  left  for  one  more  great  effort. 
And,  coming  to  a  lake,  he  picked  up  a  very  large  chip, 
•and  having  seamed  it  with  sorcery  and  maguiiied  it 
by  magio  threw  it  into  the  water,  where  it  at  oijce 
seemed  to  be  a  great  shij),  such  as  white  men  l)uild. 
And  when  the  Wild  Cat  came  up  he  saw  it,  with 
sails  spread  and  flags  flying,  and  the  captain  stood  so 
stately  on  the  deck,  with  folded  arms,  and  he  was  a 
fine,  gray-haired,  dignified  man,  with  a  cocked  hat,  the 
two  points  of  which  were  like  grand  and  stately  horns. 
Ihit  the  Wild  Cat  had  sworn,  and  he  was  mindful  of 
his  great  oath ;  so  he  cried,  "■  You  cannot  escape  me 
tliis  time,  Rabbit !  I  have  you  now !  "  Saying  this  he 
l)lunged  in,  and  tried  to  swim  to  the  ship.  And  the 
captain,  seeiiig  a  Wild  Cat  in  the  water,  being  en- 
gaged in  musket  drill,  ordered  his  men  to  fire  at  it, 


222      THE  ALGONQUm  LEGENDS. 

which  thoy  did  wltli  a  bang- !  Now  tliis  was  caused  hy 
a  party  of  night-hawks  ovei-hcad,  who  swooped  down 
with  a  sudden  cry  like  a  sliot ;  at  k-ast  it  seemed  so  to 
Wikl  ( 'at,  who,  deceived  and  ai)})alled  by  this  volley, 
deeming'  that  he  had  verily  made  a  mistake  this  time, 
turned  tail  and  swam  ashore  into  the  dark  old  for- 
est, where,  if  he  is  not  dead,  he  is  running  still.^ 

^  This  expression,  very  coinnion  anionj^  the  ludiiius,  appears  to 
have  been  tiikeu  from  tlie  CiUiadiaiis.  //  court  encore  ends  many 
of  their  stories.  Tliis  was  related  to  me  by  Toniah  Josephs, 
Septeml)er  2,  1882.  I  have  four  versions  of  it.  In  one,  the 
Chij»pi'\va,  given  by  Sehooleraft,  the  ^vi-eti-hed  efforts  to  rival 
the  \vood})eekers  and  bear  are  attributed  to  a  no  less  personage 
than  Hiawatha,  or  Manobozho,  himself,  when  under  a  eloud. 
But  Hiawatha  as  a  poem  deals  only  with  the  better  part  of  the 
hero's  eharaeter.  In  the  Rand  manuserii)t,  the  most  amusing 
portion  of  the  adventures  of  the  Rabbit,  or  those  with  the  Wild 
Cat,  arc  niueli  abbreviated.  Tomah's  tale  supplies  this  missing 
portion,  but  ecmsists  of  nothing  else.  The  Abenaki  tale  is 
slightly  different  in  its  beginning  ;  "  Rabbit  was  making  maple- 
sugar  in  the  woods,  but  he  was  very  pious,  and  rest(!d  on  the 
Sabbath.  "While  pi'aying  on  this  day  by  his  hearth,  there  eame  a 
great  black  fierce  man,  who  ghired  at  him,  but  IMahtigwess 
kept  saying  '  Peace  !  peace  !  peace  !  '  for  that  is  the  way  the 
llabbit  prays.  Then  the  stranger  was  angry  because  he  would 
not  cease  praying  and  talk  to  him,  but  the  Rabbit  said,  '  Would 
yon  have  me  break  the  Sabbath  ?  '  Then  he  went  and  brought 
the  stranger,  who  w^as  a  Wild  Cat,  refreshments."  These  refresh- 
ments were  the  same  as  those  given  by  the  Doctor.  Here  the 
chase  begins. 

There  is  probably  much  more  of  this  story. 


ADVENTURES   UP  MASTER   RABBIT.       223 

V.     Hmv  Master  llahhit  werit  to  a  Wedding  and  won  the 

Bride. 

(Passiuua(|iu)cl(ly.) 

Chee  mahtij^wcss,  or  tlie  Gioat  llal)blt,  was  once 
very  stout  or  large  of  body,  liaviii<^  a  very  long  tail. 
And  one  day  in  the  old  times,  as  he  sat  on  the  rock, 
with  his  fine  long  tail  trailing  afar  into  the  biishes,  an 
old  man  came  by  who  Jiskcd  the  way.  And  Master 
IJabbit,  being  as  usual  obliging,  offered  to  show  it  to 
him.  So  they  talked  together  and  grew  intimate,  but 
as  the  old  man  went  very  slowly,  while  llabbit  was 
always  running,  he  said,  "  Go  on  before,  and  I  will 
follow."  So  the  guide  was  soon  out  of  sight,  and  then 
the  old  man,  hurrying  without  luicding,  fell  down  into 
a  deep  pit  or  chasm,  where  he  cried  out  aloud  for  lielj), 
but  was  not  heard.  After  a  time,  Ival)bit,  missing  his 
follower,  turned  back  and  tracked  hiiu  till  he  found 
the  pit.  Yet  they  could  not  between  them  manage  to 
bring  the  traveler  up  again,  until  liabbit  said,  "  Catch 
hold  of  my  tail ; "  and  when  this  was  done  ho  gave  a 
jump,  but  alas  !  the  fine  tail  broke  olf  short  within  an 
inch  of  the  root. 

One  would  think  that  by  this  time  jVIaster  Rabbit 
n\ust  have  had  enough  of  helping,  but  all  the  stories 
of  him  show  that  he  never  gave  u})  anything  which 
he  had  once  begun.  So  he  simply  said  to  the  old 
man,  "  Catch  hold  of  me  round  the  waist ; "  and 
when  this  was  done  he  gave  another  leap,  and  brought 
the   prisoner   out.     But   the   man,  being  heavy,  had 


224  THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

slipped  down,  and  almost  broken  Rabbit's  back.  So 
it  canio  to  pass  that  since  that  day  Master  Kabbit  has 
had  a  very  short  tail  and  a  slender  waist. 

The  old  man  was  on  his  way  to  marry  a  young 
girl,  liut  she  was  in  love  with  Mikumwcss,  the  forest 
fairy.  However,  the  old  man  married  her,  and  invited 
Master  Kabbit  to  the  dance,  which  in  old  times  made 
the  ceremony.  And  tlie  guest  dressed  for  the  occasion 
by  putting  ear-rings  on  liis  heels  — for  Rabbits  or  Hares 
dance  on  their  tip-toes  —  and  a  beautiful  bangle  round 
his  neck,  and  he  danced  opposite  the  bride.  Now  the 
bride  had  on  only  a  very  short  skirt,  and  in  crossing  a 
brook  it  had  got  wet.  So  that  as  she  danced,  it  began 
to  shrink  and  shrink,  until  Master  Rabbit,  pitying  the 
poor  girl,  ran  out  and  got  a  deer-skin,  and  hastily 
twisted  a  cord  to  tie  it  with.  But  it  seemed  as  if 
Master  Rabbit's  efforts  to  oblige  peoi)lc  always  got 
him  into  trouble,  for  he  twisted  this  string  so  rapidly 
and  earnestly,  holding  one  end  of  it  in  his  teeth  as 
he  did  so,  that  he  cut  his  upper  lip  through  to  the 
nose,  for  wliich  reason  his  descendants  all  have  hare- 
lips to  this  day. 

Now  having  d?.'essed  the  bride,  she  was  so  gi-ateful  to 
Rabbit  that  she  danced  with  him  all  the  night.  The 
old  man,  seeing  this,  was  so  angry  at  her  fickleness 
that,  without  saying  a  word,  he  walked  away,  and  left 
her  to  Mahtigwess,  with  whom  she  lived  very  happily 
until  she  ran  away  with  Mikumwess  ;  with  whom,  if 
she  has  not  run  away  again,  she  is  living  yet.  This 
story  is  at  an  end. 


00  r; 


ADVENTURES  OF  iM ASTER  RABBIT.      'Sib 

VI.     How  Master  R<thblt  gave  himself  Airs. 
(Mieiuiic.) 

It  happened  once  that  Lox  was  livhig  in  p^roat  hix- 
ury.  lie  luul  a  wigwam  full  of  huiulreds  of  diied  sua- 
(Iticks,  moose  meat,  maple-sugar,  and  eoi-n.  He  gave 
a  dinner,  and  among  the  guests  invited  Marten  and 
Mahtigwess,  the  Kabbit. 

Now  it  is  a  great  weakness  of  Master  llabbit  that 
he  is  much  given  to  hinting  at  one  minute,  and  saying 
l)retty  plainly  the  next,  that  he  has  been  in  better  so- 
ciety than  that  around  iiim,  and  has  lived  anumg 
great  people,  and  no  one  was  quieker  than  the  Marten 
to  fnid  out  that  wherein  any  one  was  foolish  or  feeble. 
So  when  Master  Kabbit,  smoothing  down  his  white 
fur,  said  it  was  the  only  Icind  of  a  coat  worn  by  tlu; 
aristocracy,  Marten  humbly  inquired,  "  if  that  were 
so,  how  he  came  by  it." 

"  It  shows,"  rei)lied  Master  Rabbit,  "  that  I  have 
hahitually  kept  company  with  gentlemen." 

"  How  did  you  get  that  slit  in  your  lip  ?  "  inquired 
Marten,  who  knew  very  well  what  this  Indian  really 
was. 

"  Ah  !  "  replied  the  Rabbit,  "  wlievc  /  live  they 
use  knives  and  forks.  And  one  day,  while  eating  witli 
some  great  sagamores,  my  knife  slipped,  and  I  cut  my 
Hp." 

"  And  why  are  your  mouth  and  whiskers  always 
going  when  you  arc  still  ?     Is  that  high  style  ?  " 

"  Yes ;   I  am  meditating,  planning,  combining  great 

15 


226      THE  ALGONQUm  LECENDS. 

afYuirs ;  talking  to  myself,  you  sec.  That 's  the  way 
we  do." 

"  Jiut  why  do  you  always  hop  ?  AVliy  don't  you 
sonu'tinies  walk,  like  other  people  ?  " 

"  Ah,  tliat  's  our  style.  We  gentlemen  don't  run, 
like  the  vulgar.  We  have  a  gait  of  our  own,  don't 
you  know  ?  " 

"  Indeed !  Well,  if  you  don't  mind  a  question,  I 
would  like  to  know  wliy  you  always  scamper  away  so 
suddenly,  and  jump  so  far  and  so  rapidly  when  you 
run." 

"  Aw !  don't  you  know  ?  I  used  to  bo  cmi)loyed 
in  very  genteel  business  ;  public  service,  —  in  fact, 
diplomatic.  I  carried  dispatches  Qivcer/adif/fnin,  Mic- 
mac;  'iriyJiiggin^  Pass.) — l)ooks,  letters,  papers,  and 
so  I  got  in  the  way  of  moving  nimbly.  Now  it 
comes  naturally  to  me.  One  of  my  old  aristocratic 
habits."  1 

Upon  this  IMarten  gave  it  up.  He  had  seen  some- 
thing of  good  society  himself,  as  he  lived  habitually 
with  Glooskap,  but  Master  Kabbit  was  too  much  for 
him. 

^  This  droll  dinloguo  occurs  in  the  middle  of  the  ISIiciiiac  story 
of  Lox,  or  IJadj^er,  and  the  Ducks  and  Bear,  where  it  evidently 
does  not  belong,  or  has  been  interpolated  to  make  length.  In  the 
original,  Marten  carries  his  incjuirios  nuich  further  into  certain 
physiological  details,  all  of  which  Master  Rabbit  naively  explains 
as  the  result  of  the  delicate  diet  and  the  wine  to  which  he  as  a 
gentleman  had  been  accustomed. 


ADVENTURES   OF  MASTER  RADBIT.      227 

r//.    The  YoatKj  Man  tvho  was  Saoocl  hy  <i  Ilahhlt  and  a 

Fox. 

(Pas.samiKiuoildy.) 

There  dwelt  a  eoui)le  in  the  woods,  far  away  from 
other  people,  —  a  man  and  his  wife.  They  had  ono 
boy,  who  grew  up  strong  and  clever.  Ono  day  ho 
said,  "  Fatlier  and  mother,  let  mo  go  and  see  other 
men  and  women."     They  grieved,  but  let  him  go. 

lie  went  afar.  All  night  he  lay  on  the  ground.  In 
the  morning  he  hoard  something  coming.  Ho  rose 
and  saw  it  was  a  Kabbit,  wlio  said,  "  I  la,  friend,  where 
go  you?"  The  boy  answered,  '"To  find  people." 
"That  is  what  I  want,"  replied  the  Uabblt.  "Let 
us  go  together." 

So  they  went  on  for  a  long  time,  till  they  heard 
voices  far  off,  and  walking  ([uietly  came  to  a  village. 
"Now,"  said  the  liabbit,  "  steal  up  unseen,  and  listen 
to  them  !  "  The  bi*y  did  so,  and  heard  the  people 
saying  that  a  kcnia/iqu,  a  cannibal  monster,  was  to 
come  the  next  day  to  devour  the  daughter  of  their 
sagamore.  And  having  returned  and  reported  this 
to  the  Kabbit,  the  latter  said  to  the  boy,  "  Have  no 
fear  ;  go  to  the  people  and  tell  them  tliat  you  can  save 
her."  lie  did  so,  but  it  was  long  before  they  would 
listen  to  him.  Yet  at  last  it  came  to  the  cars  of  the 
old  chief  that  a  strange  young  man  insisted  that  he 
could  save  the  girl ;  so  the  chief  sent  for  him,  and 
said,  "They  tell  me  that  you  think  you  can  deliver  my 
daughter  from  death.     Do  so,  and  sho  shall  be  yours." 


228  THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

Tlien  ho  roturncd  to  the  K:ilA)lt,  who  said,  "  They 
did  iKjt  send  the  j^iil  far  away  because  they  know  that 
the  <lemon  can  follow  any  track.  I  Jut  I  hope  to  nuiko 
a  truck  which  he  cannot  follow.  Now  do  you,  as  soon 
as  it  shall  be  dark,  brin<^  her  to  this  place."  The 
young  man  did  so,  and  the  llabbit  was  there  with  a 
sled,  and  in  his  hand  ho  had  two  s(|uirrels.  These 
he  smoothed  down,  and  as  ho  did  so  they  grew  to  be 
as  ^arge  as  the  largest  sled-dogs.  Then  all  three 
went  heacUong,  like  the  wind,  till  they  came  to  an- 
otlier  village. 

Tlie  Rabbit  looked  about  till  ho  found  a  certain 
wigwaui,  and  then  peered  through  a  crevice  into  it. 
"  This  is  the  place,"  he  said.  "  Enter."  They  did 
so ;  then  the  Kabbit  ran  away.  They  found  in  the 
cabin  an  old  woman,  who  was  very  kind,  but  who,  on 
seeing  thorn,  burst  into  tears.  "  Ah,  my  dear  grand- 
children," ^  she  crie<l,  "  your  death  is  following  you 
rapidly,  for  the  kcwalupi'  is  on  your  track,  and  will 
soon  be  here.  But  run  down  to  the  river,  where  you 
will  find  your  grandfatlier  camping." 

They  went,  and  were  joined  by  the  Rabbit,  who 
had  spent  the  time  in  making  many  divergent  tracks 
in  the  ground.  The  kewahqu'  came.  The  tracks 
delayed  him  a  long  time,  but  at  last  he  found  tlio 
right  one.  Meanwhile  the  young  couple  went  on,  and 
found  an  old    man   by  the  river.     He  said,  "  Truly 

^  The  terms  p^raiulchiUb'on,  graiulinotlicr,  etc.,  cTo  not  hero 
signify  actual  relationship,  but  only  friendship  between  elderly 
and  young  people. 


ADVENTURES  OF  MASTER  RABBIT.      229 

you  arc  in  <j;To;it  (laiiger,  for  tliu  kewali(iu'  is  coniiiii«-. 
But  1  will  hel[)  you."  Sayiii}^'  this,  lio  threw  hinisi'lf 
into  the  water,  where  ho  Hoatcal  with  outstretehetl 
limbH,  anil  said,  "•  Now,  my  children,  get  on  nie."  Tho 
girl  feared  lest  slie  should  fall  off,  but  being  reas- 
sured mounted,  when  he  turneil  into  a  canoe,  which 
carried  them  safely  across.  Ikit  when  they  turned  to 
look  at  him,  lo  I  he  was  no  longer  a  canoe,  but  an  old 
Duck.  "  Now,  my  dear  children,"  he  said,  "  hasten 
to  the  top  of  yonder  old  mountain,  high  among  tho 
gray  rocks.  There  you  will  iind  your  friend."  i'hey 
fled  to  tho  old  gray  mountain.  Tho  kewaluiu'  camo 
raging  and  roaiing  in  a  fury,  but  however  he  pur- 
sued they  were  at  the  foot  of  the  precipice  before 
him. 

U'here  stood  the  Kabbit.  lie  was  holding  up  a  very 
long  pole ;  no  pine  was  ever  longer.  "  Clind)  this," 
he  said.  And,  as  they  clind)ed,  it  lengthened,  till  they 
left  it  for  the  hill,  and  then  scrambled  up  the  rocks. 
Then  the  kewaluiu'  came  yelling  and  howling  horri- 
bly. Seeing  the  fugitives  far  above,  he  swarmed  up 
the  pole.  With  him,  too,  it  grew,  and  grew  rapidly, 
till  it  seemed  to  be  half  a  mile  high.  Now  the  ke- 
wahqn'  was  no  such  sorcerer  that  he  could  fly ;  neither 
had  he  wings  ;  he  nnist  remain  on  tho  i)ole  ;  and  when 
he  came  to  the  toj)  the  young  man  i)uslied  it  afar. 
It  fell,  and  the  monster  was  killed  by  the  fall  thereof. 

They  went  with  the  squirrel  -  sledge ;  they  flew 
through  the  w^oods  on  the  snow  by  the  moonlight; 
they  were  very  glad.     And  at  last  they  came  to  the 


230  Tin:  a  La  on  uu  in  legends. 

girl's  vill;i<;(',  wlieii  the  K;ibl)it  said,  '•  Now,  friend, 
g()()d-l)y.  Yet  tliere  is  more  troiilde  coming',  and  when 
it  is  with  you  1  and  mine  will  aid  you.  So  farewell." 
And  wlien  tiiey  were  home  again  it  all  appeared  liiio 
a  dream.  Then  the  wedding  feast  was  held,  and  all 
sccnned  well. 

But  the  young  men  of  the  village  hated  tlie  youth, 
and  desired  to  kill  liim,  that  they  might  take  his  wife. 
They  persuaded  him  to  go  witli  them  fishing  on  the 
sea.  Then  they  raised  a  cry,  and  said,  "  A  whale  is 
chasing  us!  he  is  under  the  canoe!"  and  suddenly 
they  knocked  him  overboard,  and  paddled  away  like 
an  arrow  in  iiigiit. 

The  young  man  called  for  help.  A  Crow  came,  and 
said,  "  Swim  or  float  as  long  as  you  can.  I  will  bring 
you  aid."  He  floated  a  long  time.  The  Crow  re- 
turned with  a  strong  cord;  the  Crow  made  himself 
very  large ;  he  threw  one  end  of  the  cord  to  the  youth  ; 
by  the  other  he  towed  him  to  a  small  island.  "■  I  can 
do  no  more,"  he  saitl ;  "  but  there  is  another  friend." 
So  as  the  youth  sat  there,  starving  and  freezing,  there 
came  to  him  a  Fox.  "  Ha,  friend,"  he  said,  "  are  you 
here  ? "  "  Yes,"  replied  the  youth,  "  and  dying  of 
hunger."  The  Fox  reflected  an  instant,  and  said, 
"  Truly  I  have  no  meat ;  and  yet  there  is  a  way." 
So  he  picked  from  the  ground  a  blade  of  dry  grass, 
and  bade  the  youth  eat  it.  He  did  so,  and  found 
himself  a  moose  (or  a  horsc^.  Then  he  fed  richly 
on  the  young  grass  till  he  had  enough,  when  the  Fox 
gave   him  a  second   straw,   and    he   became   a    man 


ADVENTUPiES  OF  .VASTER  liAnBlT.      2531 

aguiu.  "  Friend,"  s:ii«l  the  Fox,  '*  there  in  an  Indian 
vilhige  on  the  niahi-hmd,  where  there  is  to  he  a  <;reat 
feast,  a  grand  (huiee.  Wonhl  yon  like  to  be  there?" 
"•  Indeed  I  wonld,"  replied  the  yonth.  "  Then  wait  till 
dark,  and  I  will  take  yon  tiiere,"  said  the  F'ox.  And 
when  night  came  ho  bade  the  youth  clo.se  his  eyes  and 
enter  the  river,  and  take  hold  of  the  end  of  his  tail, 
while  he  should  draw.  So  in  the  tossing  sea  they 
went  on  for  hours.  Th<ni<jht  the  youth,  "  Wo  shall 
never  get  there."  ^uld  the  I'ox,  "  Yes,  we  will,  but 
keep  your  eyes  shut."  So  it  went  on  for  another 
hour,  when  the  youth  thoiujlit  again,  "  We  shall  never 
reach  hind."  Said  the  F'ox,  '"  Yes,  we  shall."  How- 
ever, after  a  time  he  oi)cncd  his  eyes,  when  they  wero 
only  ten  feet  from  the  shore,  and  this  cost  them  more 
time  and  trouble  than  all  the  previous  swim  ere  they 
had  the  beach  under  foot. 

It  was  his  ov>n  village.  The  festival  was  for  the 
marriage  of  his  own  wife  to  one  of  the  young  men 
wlio  had  i)ushed  him  overboard.  Clreat  was  his  magie 
power,  great  wjis  his  anger ;  he  became  strong  as 
death.  Then  he  went  to  his  own  wigwam,  and  his 
wife,  seeing  him,  cried  aloud  for  joy,  and  kissed  lum 
and  wo})t  all  at  once.  He  said,  "  Be  glad,  but  the 
hour  of  punishment  for  the  men  who  made  these 
tears  is  come."  So  he  went  to  the  sagamore  and 
told  him  all. 

The  old  chief  called  for  the  young  men.  "  Slay 
them  all  as  you  choose,"  he  said  to  his  son-in-law ; 
"  scalp   them."     But  the  youth   refused.     He  called 


232  THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

to  the  Fox,  and  got  the  straws  which  gave  the  power 
to  transform  men  to  beasts.  lie  changed  his  enemies 
into  bad  animals,  —  one  into  a  i)orcni)ine,  one  into 
a  hog,  —  and  they  were  driven  into  the  woods.  Thns 
it  was  that  the  first  hog  and  the  first  i)orcupine  came 
into  the  workl. 

This  story,  narrated  by  Tomah  Joseplis,  is  partly 
old  Indian  and  partly  European,  but  whether  the  lat- 
ter element  was  derived  from  ji  French  Canadian  or 
a  Norse  source  I  cannot  tell,  since  it  is  common  to 
both.  The  mention  of  the  horse  and  the  hog,  or  of 
cattle,  does  not  prove  that  a  story  is  not  pre-Colum- 
bian. The  Norsemen  had  brought  cattle  of  various 
descriptions  even  to  New  England.  It  is  to  ^^Q  very 
much  regretted  that  the  first  settlers  in  New  England 
took  no  pains  to  ascertain  what  the  Indians  knew  of 
the  white  men  who  had  ])receded  th(>m.  But  modern 
material  may  have  easily  been  added  to  an  old  le- 
gend. 


THE  CIIENOO   LEGENDS. 

/.     The  Cheuoo,  or  the  Story  of  a  Cannibal  with  an  Icif 

Heart. 

(Micniac  aiul   I'iussaiuaquoddy.) 

Of  the  old  time.  An  Iiuliaii,  with  his  wife  and 
their  little  boy,  went  one  autumn  far  away  to  hunt  in 
tlie  northwest.  And  havint;'  found  a  lit  place  to  i)ass 
the  winter,  they  huilt  a  wigwam.  The  man  brought 
home  the  game,  the  woman  dressed  and  dried  the 
meat,  the  small  boy  played  about  shooting  birds  with 
bow  and  arrow  ;  in  Indian-wise  all  went  well. 

One  afternoon,  when  the  man  was  away  and  the 
wife  gathering  wood,  she  heard  a  rustling  in  the 
bushes,  as  tiiough  some  beast  were  brushing  through 
them,  and,  looking  uj),  slie  saw  with  horror  something 
worse  than  the  worst  she  had  feared.  It  was  an  awful 
faee  glaring  at  her,  —  a  something  made  of  devil,  man, 
and  beast  in  their  most  dreadful  forn\s.  It  was  lilce 
a  haggard  old  man,  with  wolfish  eyes  ;  he  was  stark 
naked ;  his  shoulders  and  lii)s  were  gnawed  away,  as 
if,  when  mad  with  hunger,  he  had  eaten  his  own  flesh. 
He  carried  a  bundle  on  his  Ijaek.  TI.'.'  -vonjan  had 
heard  of  the  terrible  Chenoo,  the  being  who  comes 
from  the  far,  icy  north,  a  crcatm'e  who  is  a  man 
grown  to  be  both  devil  and  cannibal,  and  saw  at  once 
that  this  was  one  of  them. 


234  THE  ALCONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

Truly  she  was  in  trouble ;  but  dire  need  <;ives  quick 
wit,  as  it  was  with  tJiis  woman,  wlio,  insteail  of  show- 
ing- fear,  ran  uj)  and  addressed  him  with  fair  words, 
as  "  My  dear  father,"  i)retending'  surprise  and  joy, 
and,  telling  him  how  glad  her  heart  was,  asked  where 
he  had  been  so  long.  The  Chenoo  was  amazed  be- 
yond measure  at  such  a  greeting  wliere  he  exi)ectcd 
yells  {uid  prayers,  and  in  nuitc  wonder  let  himself  be 
led  into  the  wigwam. 

She  was  a  wise  and  good  woman.  She  took  him 
in  ;  she  said  she  was  sorry  to  see  him  so  woe-begone  ; 
she  pitied  his  sad  state ;  she  brought  a  suit  of  her 
husband's  elothes ;  she  told  him  to  dress  himself  and 
be  eleaned.  lie  did  as  she  bade,  lie  sat  by  the  side 
of  the  wigwam,  and  looked  surly  and  sad,  but  kci)t 
quiet.     It  was  all  a  new  thing  to  hlni. 

She  arose  and  went  out.  She  kept  gathering  sticks. 
The  Chenoo  rose  and  followed  her.  She  was  in  great 
fear.  '-  Now,"  she  thought,  "  my  death  is  near  ;  now 
he  will  kill  and  devour  me." 

The  Chenoo  came  to  her.  lie  said,  "  Give  me  the 
axe !  "  She  gave  it,  and  he  began  to  cut  down  the 
trees.  Man  never  saw  such  chopi)ing !  The  great 
pines  fell  right  and  left,  lik(^  sunuuer  saplings  ;  the 
boughs  were  hewed  and  si)lit  as  if  by  a  tempest. 
She  cried  out,  '"'' Kno^  tdheagul  hoohsoogull ''''  "My 
father,  there  is  enough  !  '  ^  lie  laid  down  the  axe  ; 
he  walked  into  the  wigwam  and  sat  down,  always  in 

1  TIic  treinendoi.  piac  cliopper  is  a  chtiracter  in  another  In- 
dian tale, 


THE   ClIENOO   LEHENDS.  235 

o-rim  silence.  The  woman  iiutliered  her  wood,  and 
remained  as  silent  on  the  opposite  side. 

Slie  heard  lier  husband  eoniing.  She  ran  out  and 
told  him  all.  She  asked  him  to  do  as  she  was  doiucf. 
He  thought  it  well,  lie  went  in  and  spoke  kindly. 
He  said,  "■.V'c////c7/,''  "My  father-in-law,"  and  asked 
where  lie  had  been  so  long.  The  Chenoo  stared  in 
amazement,  but  when  he  heard  the  man  talk  of  all 
that  had  ha[)[)ened  for  years  his  fierce  face  grew 
gentler. 

Tliey  had  their  meal ;  they  offered  him  food,  but 
ho  hardly  touelied  it.  He  lay  down  to  slecj).  Tho 
man  and  his  wife  kept  awake  in  terror.  A\'heu  tlio 
lire  burned  up,  and  it  became  warm,  the  Clienoo  asked 
that  a  screen  should  lie  placed  before  him.  He  was 
from  the  ice ;  he  could  not  endure  heat. 

For  three  days  he  stayed  in  the  wigwam  ;  for  three 
days  he  was  sullen  and  grim  ;  he  hardly  ate.  Then 
he  seemed  to  change.  He  spoke  to  the  woman  ;  ho 
asked  her  if  she  had  any  tallow.  She  told  liini  they 
had  much.  He  filled  a  large  kctthi ;  there  was  a  gal- 
lon of  it.  He  put  it  on  the  fire.  When  it  was  scald- 
ing liot  ho  drank  it  all  off  at  a  draught. 

O  CD 

Ho  became  sick  ;  he  grew  jiale.  He  cast  np  all  tho 
liorrors  and  abominations  of  earth,  things  apiialling  to 
every  sense.     When  all  was  over  he  seemed  changed.^ 

^  Tho  Clicnoo  is  not  only  a  o;innil)al,  1)iit  a  plioul.  lie  preys 
on  nameless  horrors.  In  this  case,  "  having  yielded  to  the  power 
of  kindness,  ho  has  made  up  his  mind  to  partake  of  the  food  and 
hospitality  of  his  hosts,"  "  to  change  his  life;  hut  to  adapt  his 


23G  tup:  ALGONQUfN  LECIENDS. 

IIo  luy  down  and  slept.  Whon  ho  awoke  lio  asked 
for  food,  and  ate  nineli.  From  that  time  lie  was  kind 
and  i^ood.      rhcy  feared  him  no  more. 

Tliey  lived  on  meat  sneh  as  Indians  prepare.^  The 
Chenoo  was  tired  of  it.  Ones  day  he  said,  "  N'tonn  " 
(my  dan<;hter),  "  have  y(m  no  paid  'wcooa  ?  "  (fresh 
meat).  Slie  said,  "  No."  When  her  hnsband  re- 
turned the  Chenoo  saw  that  there  was  black  mud  on 
his  snow-shoes.  lie  asked  him  if  there  was  a  sjjring 
of  water  near.  The  friend  said  there  was  <me  half 
a  day's  journey  distant.  "  We  nmst  go  there  to-mor- 
row," said  the  (^henoo. 

And  tiiey  went  t(\i;'ethor,  very  early.  The  Indian 
was  tieet  in  sneli  rnnnini;".  But  the  old  man,  who 
seemed  so  wasted  and  worn,  went  on  his  snow-shoes 
like  the  wind.  They  eanie  to  the  s])rhii;'.'^  It  was 
lari;e  and  beautiful ;  the  snow  was  all  melted  away 
around  it ;  the  border  was  flat  and  green.^ 

system  to  the  new  rogimftn,  ho  must  thoroughly  clera*  it  of  tlio 
oUl."  —  Rand  maimscript.  This  is  a  very  naive  and  curious 
Iiuliau  coni^e])tion  of  moral  reformation.  It  appears  to  be  a  very 
anoieut  Eskimo  tale,  recast  in  modern  time  by  some  zealous 
recent  Christian  converi , 

1  That  is,  cured,  dried,  smoked,  and  then  packed  and  pressed 
m  large  blocks. 

-  "  The  Micmacs  have  two  words  for  a  spring  of  water  :  one 
for  sununer,  utkuJmh,  wliich  moans  that  the  water  is  cool  ;  the 
othor  for  winter,  keesoohok,  indicating  that  it  is  warm."  —  S.  T. 
Hand. 

8  Not  uncommon  round  warm  springs  even  in  midwinter,  and 
among  ice  and  snow. 


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THE   C HEX 00  LEdEXDS.  237 

Then  tlio  Clu'iioo  stripi^'d  lilmsclf,  and  danced 
around  tliu  s})iing-  liis  uiagie  danoo  ;  and  soon  the  water 
he^an  to  foam,  and  anon  to  rise  and  fall,  as  if  some 
monster  below  were  hcnivin^'  in  accord  witli  the  ste})s 
and  the  song.  The  Chenoo  danced  faster  and  wilder; 
then  the  head  of  an  innnense  T'ahtdlok^  or  lizard, 
rose  above  the  surface.  The  old  man  killed  it  with  a 
blow  of  his  hatchet.  Draji^jing  it  out  he  began  again 
to  dance,  lie  brought  out  another,  the  female,  not 
so  large,  but  still  heavy  as  an  elk.  They  were  small 
spring  lizards,  but  the  Chenook  had  conjured  them ; 
by  his  magic  they  were  made  into  monsters. 

lie  dressed  the  game  ;  he  cut  it  up.  He  took  the 
heads  and  feet  and  tails  and  all  that  he  did  not  want, 
and  cast  them  back  into  the  spring.  "  They  will  grow 
again  into  many  lizards,"  he  said.  When  the  meat 
was  trinmied  it  looked  like  that  of  the  bear,  lie 
bound  it  together  with  withes ;  he  took  it  on  his  shoid- 
ders  ;  he  ran  like  the  wind  ;  his  load  was  nothing. 

The  Indian  was  a  great  runner ;  in  all  the  land 
was  not  his  like ;  but  now  he  lagged  far  btdiind. 
"•  Can  you  go  no  faster  than  that  ?  "  asked  the  Che- 
noo. '*  The  sun  is  setting ;  the  red  will  be  black 
anon.  At  this  rate  it  will  be  dark  ere  we  get  home. 
Get  on  my  shoulders." 

The  Indian  mounted  on  the  load.  The  Chenoo 
bade  him  hold  liis  head  low%  so  tliat  he  could  not  be 
knocked  off  l)y  the  branclics.  "  Ih'ace  your  feet,"  lie 
said,  '"  so  as  to  be  steady."  Tlien  tiie  old  man  ilew 
like  the  wind,  —  nche  sokauo^cjal  saruastukti'tikuyul 


238  THE  ALflONQUIN  LRdENDS. 

chcl  ifof/umfiiunvf/  7rv(/iil ;  the  biislios  whistled  as  they 
Hew  i):ist  tlieiii.     They  got  home  before  sunsiit. 

The  wife  was  afraid  to  touch  such  meat.^  Ihit  hei- 
hushand  was  jjcrsuaded  to  eat  of  it.  It  was  like  l)ear\s 
meat.  'J'he  Cheiioo  fed  ou  it.  So  they  all  lived  aH 
fiiends. 

Then  tlic  spring*  was  at  hand.  One  day  the;  Clienoo 
told  them  that  something  terrible  would  soon  come  to 
pass.  An  enemy,  a  Chenoo,  a  woman,  was  coming  like 
wind,  yes  —  ou  the  wind  —  from  tlie  north  to  kill  him. 
Tliere  could  be  no  escape  from  the  l)attle.  Slie  would 
be  far  more  furious,  mad,  and  cruel  than  any  male, 
even  one  of  his  o^vn  cruel  race,  could  be.  He  knew 
not  how  the  battle  would  end  ;  but  the  man  and  his 
wife  must  be  put  in  a  pla<;c  of  safety.  To  kec})  from 
hearing  the  terrible  war-whoo})s  of  tlie  Chenoo,  which 
is  death  to  mortals,  their  ears  must  be  closed.  Thev 
must  hide  themselves  in  a  cave. 

TJien  he  sent  the  woman  for  the  bundle  which  he 
had  brought  with  him,  and  which  had  hung  untouched 
on  a  branch  of  a  tree  since  he  had  been  with  them. 
And  he  said  if  she  found  aught  in  it  offensive  to  her 
to  throw  it  away,  but  to  certainly  bring  him  a  smaller 
bundle  which  was  within  tlie  other.  So  she  went  .and 
opened  it,  and  that  which  she  found  tlierein  was  a 
pair  of  human  legs  and  feet,  the  remains  of  some  ear- 
lier horrid  meal.  She  threw  them  far  away.  The 
small  bundle  she  brought  to  him. 

^  "The  liuliiuis  are  much  loss  iKU'ticuhir  Ihaii  white  men  as  to 
food,  but  they  avoid  choojeeck;  or  reptiles."  —  Rand  manusoript. 


THE   CIIE^OO  LEGTCNDS.  239 

Tho  Chcnoo  opened  it  and  took  fioni  it  a  j)air  of 
horns, — liorn.s  of  the  c/icj)!l('/ic(ihii,  oi  i\v:\<^o\i.  Ono 
of  thcni  has  two  branches  ;  i]\v  other  is  stral^lit  and 
smooth.^  They  were  j^ohlen-bright.  lie  gave  the 
straiglit  liorn  to  the  Indian  ;  he  kept  the  other.  He 
said  that  tliesc  were  niagieal  weapons,  and  the  only 
ones  of  any  use  in  the  coming  light.  So  they  waited 
for  tlie  foe. 

And  the  third  day  came.  'J'he  Chenoo  was  fierce 
and  bold;  he  listened;  he  had  no  fear,  lie  heard 
the  long  and  awful  scream  —  like  nothing  of  eartJi  — 
of  the  enemy,  as  she  sped  tlirongh  the  air  far  away  iu 
the  icy  north,  long  ere  the  others  could  hear  it.  And 
tlie  manner  of  it  was  this :  that  if  they  without  harm 
sliould  live  after  hearing  the  first  deadly  yell  of  the 
enemy  they  could  take  no  harm,  and  if  tliey  did  but 
hear  the  answerinn'  shout  of  tlieir  friend  all  would  be 
well  with  them.-  Ihit  he  said,  "•Should  you  hear  me 
call  for  lielj),  tlu'U  hasten  with  the  horn,  and  you  may 
save  my  life." 

They  did  as  he  bade  :  they  stopped  tlieir  ears  ;  they 
hid  in  a  dee})  hole  dug  in  the  ground.  All  at  once 
the  cry  of  the  foe  burst  on  them  like  screaming 
thunder ;  their  ears  rang  with  pain  :  they  were  well- 

^  In  the  winter  of  1882-18S3,  Toniali  Josephs  killed  a  deer 
wliosc  horns  were  precisely  like  those  of  the  ehepiteheahn  as 
regarded  shape. 

-  In  all  this  we  clearly  perceive  the  horrible  scream  of  the 
angakok;  or  Eskimo  Shaman,  trained  through  years  and  genera^ 
tious  to  utter  sounds  which  terrify  even  brave  uiou. 


240  THE  ALdOKQUIN  IFJIENDS. 

nlj;li  1;111('(1,  for  all  the  oarc  they  had  taken.  But  thon 
they  heard  the  aiisweriiij;  cry  of  their  friend,  and  were 
no  longer  in  dany-er  from  mere  noise. 

The  battle  begun,  the  light  was  feai'ful.  The  mon- 
sters, by  their  magic  with  tiu'ir  rage,  rose  to  the  size  of 
mountains.  The  tall  })ines  were  torn  up,  the  ground 
trembled  as  in  an  earthijuake,  rocks  erasheti  upon 
rocks,  the  conflict  deepened  and  darkened  ;  no  tem- 
pest was  ever  so  terrible.  Then  the  male  (Jhenoo  was 
heard  crying :  "  jV'loosook  /  fhoof/cxyijc !  abo(/  unu- 
moooJ^^  "^iy  son-in-law,  come  and  help  me  !  " 

lie  ran  to  the  fight.  What  he  saw  was  terrible! 
The  Chenoos,  who  ui)right  would  have  risen  far  above 
the  clouds  as  giants  of  hideous  form,  were  struggling 
on  the  ground.  The  female  seemed  to  be  the  con- 
queror. She  was  holding  her  foe  down,  she  knelt  on 
him,  she  was  doing  all  she  could  to  thrust  her  dragon's 
horn  into  his  ear.  And  he,  to  avoid  death,  was  mov- 
ing his  head  rapidly  from  side  to  side,  while  she, 
mocking  his  cries,  said,  "  You  have  no  son-in-law  to 
help  you."  Keen  iKthifyroIc,  "  I  '11  take  your  cursed 
life,^  and  eat  your  liver." 

^  It  is  goncriilly  said  that  there  can  be  no  swcariiij^  in  Indian, 
but  Mr.  Rand  corrects  this  gross  error.  "  It  is  a  mistake,"  he 
writes,  "  to  snpi)ose  tliat  the  red  man  cannot  swear  in  his  own 
tongue."  It  cannot,  of  course,  be  expected  that  simple  savages 
can  swear  like  cultivated  Christians,  but  they  do  the  best  they 
can.  Tliey  introduce  the  venom  into  their  speech  by  inserting 
an  ("xtra  syllable.  Thus  uaJxilc  or  ntihor  means,  "  I  will  kdl 
you,"  but  mibujmV  is  the  ecpiivalent  of  "  I  'II  take  your  cursed 
life,"  though  it  Las  not  that  literal  meaning.     Having  only  one 


tup:  ciiexoo  nECExns.  241 

The  Iiitliiiu  wjis  so  small  l»y  thoso  giants  that  tlio 
8ti'ani;i'i'  did  not  notice  liiin.  "  Now,"  said  his  friend, 
''thrust  the  hoin  into  her  ea;* !  "  lie  did  this  with  a 
well-direeted  Mow;  he  stiiiek  hard;  the  point  entered 
her  head.  At  the  touch  it  sprouted  (juick  as  a  flash 
of  li^^htning-,  it  darted  tiiroui'h  the  hea<l,  it  came  out 
of  the  other  ear,  it  had  bei!oinu  like  a  lon^'  pole.  It 
touched  the  ground,  it  struck  <lo\vnward,  it  took  deep 
and  firm  root. 

The  male  Chenoo  bade  him  raise  the  other  end  of 
the  horn  and  place  it  against  a  large  tree.  lie  did  so. 
It  coiled  itself  roinid  the  tree  like  a  snake,  it  grew 
iai)Idl3^ ;  the  enemy  was  held  hard  and  fast.  Then  tho 
two  began  to  dispatch  her.  It  was  long  and  weary 
work.  Such  a  being,  to  be  killed  at  all,  nuist  bo 
hewed  into  small  pieces  ;  flesh  and  bones  must  all  bo 
utterly  consumed  by  fire.  Should  the  least  fragment 
remain  unburnt,  fiom  it  would  spring  a  grown  Chenoo, 
with  all  the  force  and  lire  of  the  flrst.^ 

The  fury  of  battle  past,  the  Chenoos  had  become  of 
their  usual  size.  The  victor  hewed  the  enemy  to 
small  pieces,  to  be  revenged  for  the  insult  and  threat 

siiuill  syllable  to  swear  with,  the  Iiuliaiis  ari',  however,  not  so 
profuse  and  wasteful  of  profanity  as  their  more  gifted  and  pious 
white  brethren. 

^  Tlie  idea  is  common  to  both  Eskimo  and  Indian  that  so  long 
as  a  fragment  of  a  Ijody  rcniaiiis  imbuiiied,  the  being,  man  or 
b(!ast,  may,  by  magie,  be  revived  ri(>iii  it.  It  was  j)r()l)ab]y  sug- 
gested by  observing  the  great  vitality  and  power  of  self-produc- 
tion inherent  in  many  lower  forms  of  life,  and  may  have  given 
rise  to  the  belief  in  vampires. 


242  THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

as  to  eating  his  liver.  He,  having  roasted  that  part 
of  his  captive,  ate  it  before  her  ;  while  she  was  yet 
alive  he  did  this.  He  told  her  she  was  served  as  she 
would  have  served  him. 

But  the  hardest  task  of  all  was  to  come.  It  was  to 
burn  or  melt  the  heart.  It  was  of  ice,  and  more  than 
ice  :  as  much  colder  as  ice  is  colder  than  fire,  as  much 
harder  as  ice  is  harder  than  water.  When  placed  in 
the  fire  it  put  out  the  flame,  yet  by  long  burning  it 
melted  slowly,  until  tliey  at  last  broke  it  to  fragments 
with  a  hatchet,  and  then  melted  these.  So  they  re- 
turned to  the  camp. 

Spring  came.  The  snows  of  winter,  as  water,  ran 
down  tlie  rivers  to  the  sea  ;  the  ice  and  snow  which 
had  encami)ed  on  the  inland  hills  souglit  the  shore. 
So  did  the  Indian  and  his  wife ;  the  Chenoo,  with 
softened  soul,  went  witli  them.  Now  he  was  becom- 
ing a  man  like  other  men.  Before  going  they  built  a 
canoe  for  the  old  man :  they  did  not  cover  it  with 
birch  bark ;  they  made  it  of  moose-skin.^  In  it  they  I 
placed  a  jvart  of  their  venison  and  skins.  The  Chenoo 
took  his  i)lace  in  it ;  they  took  the  lead,  he  followed. 

And  after  winding  on  with  tlie  river,  do\vii  rapids 
and  under  forest-boughs,  they  came  out  into  the   sun- 

^  "The  Indians  have  several  names  for  a  canoe  :  Kwedun  Qii.); 
A^kiceden  (P.);  N'tnoal  (iM.)*  '"y  canoe  or  my  water-eraft  of  any 
kind  ;  Mooseoolk,  a  canoe  covered  with  moose-skin  (M.);  Skogu- 
moolk  (M.),  a  new  canoe  ;  N'oanoolh  (M.)»  sm  "1*^  canoe." —  Hand 
manuscript.  To  these  may  be  added  the  different  patterns  of 
canoes  peculiar  to  different  tribes,  as  for  in-jtaucc  the  Mohawk, 
which  is  broad,  with  peculiar  cuds,  etc. 


THE  CIIENOO  LEGENDS.  243 

shine,  on  a  broad,  beautiful  lake.  But  suddenly,  when 
midway  in  the  water,  the  Chenoo  laid  Hat  in  the  eanoe, 
as  if  to  hide  himself.  And  to  explain  this  he  said  that 
he  had  ju.  t  then  been  diseovered  by  another  Chenoo, 
who  was  standing  on  the  top  of  a  mountain,  whose  dim 
blue  outline  could  just  be  seen  stretching  far  away  to 
the  north.  "  lie  has  seen  me,"  he  said,  "but  he  can- 
not see  you.  Nor  can  he  behold  me  now ;  but  should 
he  discover  me  again,  his  >vi'atli  will  be  roused.  Then 
he  will  attack  me  ;  1  know  not  who  might  conquer.  I 
prefer  peace." 

So  he  lay  hidden,  and  they  took  his  canoe  in  tow. 
But  when  they  had  crossed  the  lake  and  come  to  the 
river  ajrain,  the  Chenoo  said  that  he  could  not  travel 
further  by  water,  lie  would  walk  the  woods,  but 
sail  on  streams  no  more.  80  they  told  him  where 
they  meant  to  camp  that  night.  lie  started  over 
m(/antains  and  througli  woods  and  uj)  rocks,  a  far, 
round-about  journey.  And  the  man  and  his  wife 
went  down  the  river  in  a  spring  freshet,  headlong  with 
the  rapids.i  But  when  they  had  paddled  round  the 
point  where  they  meant  to  pass  the  niglit,  they  saw 
smoke  rising  among  the  trees,  and  on  landing  tliey 
found  the  Chenoo  sleeping  soundly  by  the  fu'c  which 
had  been  built  for  them. 

1  One  should  he  familiar  with  the  almost  impassahlo  forests 
of  Maine  and  Canada,  even  as  they  are  at  the  present  day,  to 
properly  api>reeiate  the  Chenook's  journey.  As  for  the  speed  of 
the  eanoe,  I  have  myself  f^ono  down  the  Kenawha  River  (V'a.),  in 
a  dug-out,  at  the  rate  of  one  hundred  isiiles  in  a  day. 


244  THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

Tliis  lie  repejitcd  for  several  days.  But  as  they 
went  south  a  great  change  came  over  him.  He  was  a 
being  of  the  north.  Ice  and  snow  had  no  ctl'ect  on 
him,  but  he  could  not  endure  the  soft  airs  of  sunn)ier. 
He  grew  weaker  and  weaker  ;  when  they  had  reached 
their  village  he  had  to  be  carried  like  a  little  child. 
He  had  grown  gentle.  His  fierce  and  formidable 
face  was  now  like  that  of  a  man.  His  wounds  had 
healed ;  his  teeth  no  longer  grinned  wildly  all  the  time. 
The  people  gathered  round  him  in  wonder. 

He  was  dying.  This  was  after  the  white  men  had 
come.  They  sent  for  a  priest.  He  found  the  Chenoo 
as  ignorant  of  all  religion  as  a  wild  beast.  At  first 
he  would  repel  tlie  father  in  anger.  Then  he  listened 
and  learned  the  truth.  So  the  old  heathen's  heart 
changed ;  he  was  dcci)ly  moved.  He  asked  to  be 
baptized,  and  as  the  first  tear  which  he  had  ever  shed 
in  all  his  life  came  to  his  eyes  he  died.^ 

^  This  strange  iiiul  toucliiiig  tale  was  told  to  Mr.  Raiul  l>y  a 
Micinac  Iiuliaii,  Louis  Brooks,  who  hoard  it  from  his  grandfather, 
Sanniel  Paul,  a  chief,  who  died  in  184!J,  at  the  age  of  eighty. 
He  was  a  living  ehroniele  of  ancient  traditions.  The  Chenoo 
can  be  direetly  identified  with  the  so-called  Inlander  of  tho 
Greenland  Eskimo.  He  is  a  cannibal,  a  giant,  a  mysterious 
being  who  haunts  the  horrible  and  almost  iniexplored  interior. 
He  assumes  different  forms  ;  in  one  shape  he  is  supposed  to  be  a 
man  who  has  become  a  recluse  and  a  misanthrope.  But  no  such 
being  as  a  Chenoo  could  ever  have  been  imagined  out  of  an 
arctic  country.  The  conception  of  the  heart  of  hardest  ice  and 
the  gi'ndual  civilization  of  th':  savage  by  kindness  ;  the  tact  with 
which  this  is  doiu»,  as  only  a  woman  coidd  do  it  ;  the  indication 
of  the  old  nature,  as  shown  by  eating  the  liver  of  his  conquered 


THE  CIIENOO  LEGENDS.  245 

As  there  is  aetiuiUy  a  tribe  of  Indians  in  the  North- 
west eallcd  Chenoo,  there  can  be  little  doubt  as  io  the 
derivation  of  the  name.  Such  a  cliaracter  could  have 
originated,  as  I  have  said,  only  in  the  icy  north  ;  it 
could  never  have  grown  in  the  niildei"  regions  of  the 
west  and  south.  But  the  Ciienoo,  the  monstrous,  fero- 
cious cannibal  giant,  with  an  icy  heart,  is  the  central 
figure  of  the  evil  supernatural  beings  of  the  north. 
The  Schoolcraft  traditions  and  Hiawatha  have  little  to 
say  of  Titans  whose  heads  toj)  the  clouds,  who  tear  up 
forests  and  rend  rocks,  and  change  the  whole  face  of 
Nature  in  their  hideous  l)attles  or  horrible  revels.  I5ut 
such  scones  are  continually  described  by  the  Passama- 
quoddy  and  Micmac  story-tellers,  and  they  would  be 
natural  enough  to  Greenlanders,  familiar  with  wliales, 
icebergs,  frozen  wastes,  long  winter  nights,  and  all  the 
frozen  desolation  of  the  north. 

There  is  a  mystery  connected  with  the  cdtlng  of  the 
Ilvei',  wliich  is  to  be  explained,  like  many  other  Indian 
mysteries,  by  having  recourse  to  the  Eskimo  Shaman- 
ism. "  In  Cireenland  a  man  who  has  been  muvdered 
can  revenge  himself  by  ninhliKj  into  him,"  that  is, 
entering  his  soul,  "  which  can  only  be  prevented  by 
eating  a  piece  of  his  liver."  (Kink,  T.  and  T.  of  the 
Eskimo,  page  45.)  The  Chenoo  is  in  all  essentials 
identical  with  the  Kii^'n/tok  of  Greenland,  "  a  man  who 
has  tied  mankind,  and  acquired  extraoidinary  mental 
and  physical  powers.     The  story  which  I  have  here 

foe,  and  liis  final  convci-sion,  (lisi)lay  a  fjcuius  which  is  greatly 
heightened  by  the  simplicity  of  the  uuriativo. 


246      THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

given  is  probably  that  of  the  Eskimo  tale  of  the 
Blind  Man  who  recovered  his  sight  (Ilink,  page  91)), 
in  which  a  Klcit/tok^  after  becoming  incredibly  old,  re- 
turns to  mankind  to  seek  a  Shaman  priest  and  rei)ent. 
In  both  stories  there  is  a  "  Chenoo,"  and  in  both  there 
is  atonement  with  mankind  and  the  higher  j)ovvers. 

It  may  be  observed  that  while  the  Chenoo  is  a  giant 
with  a  heart  of  ice  as  hard  as  stone,  the  giant  llrmig- 
nir,  of  the  Edda,  has  a  heart  of  stone.  Th«  Chenoo 
agrees  with  the  Jotuns  in  many  respects. 

The  Start/  of  the  Great  Chenoo,  as  told  hij  the  Fassdmo/- 

quoddles. 

(Passanuiquoddy). 

What  the  Micmacs  call  a  Chenoo  is  known  to  the 
Passamaquoddics  as  a  Ivciodhqu''  or  KetcoqiC.  And 
this  is  their  origin.  A\  hen  the  Jctihi  niteoulin^  or 
Great  Big  W  itch,^  is  conquered  by  the  smaller  witches, 
or  3rtco7ilhis.sisl\  they  can  kill  liira  or  turn  him  into 
a  Iu.'W(/hqu,\  He  still  fights,  however,  with  the  other 
Keii}(tqvi}j('k.  When  they  get  ready  to  fight,  they 
suddenly  become  as  tall  as  the  highest  trees ;  their 
weapons  are  the  trees  thenipolves,  which  they  uproot 
with  great  strength.  And  this  strength  depends  upon 
the  quantity  or  size  of  the  piece  of  ice  which  makes 
the  heart  of  the  Keic((hqu\     This  piece  of  ice  is  like 

1  When  legends  from  the  Anglo-Iudiau  manuscript  collection 
of  Mitchell  are  given,  many  of  the  phrases  or  words  in  tlio 
original  are  retained,  without  regard  to  stylo  or  correctness. 
Wizard  is  here  placed  for  witch. 


THE  ClIENOO  LEGENDS.  247 

a  little  human  figure,  witii  liauds,  feet,  head,  aud 
every  member  perfeet. 

The  female  Kcwahqu'  is  more  powerful  than  the 
male.  They  make  a  noise  like  a  roaring  lion  (pccfi- 
f.(tlilo),  but  sharper  (shriller)  and  more  frightful. 
Their  abode  is  somewhere  in  /i^/.s  t/ni  da,H  doofic/c,  in 
some  cold  region  in  far  Northern  Canada. 

In  summer  time  they  rub  themselves  all  over  with 
2W0-jJ0oL-(Mcif/u.,  or  iir  balsam,  and  then  roll  themselves 
on  the  ground,  so  that  everything  adheres  to  the  body, 
—  moss,  leaves,  and  even  small  sticks.  This  was  often 
seen  of  old  by  Indian  hunters. 

Once  a  newly  married  Indian  couple  had,  accord- 
ing to  Indian  custom,  gone  on  the  long  fall  and  win- 
ter hunt.  One  day  when  the  nian  was  away  an  old 
Kcwahqu'  came  and  looked  into  the  wigwam.  The 
wife  was  frightened,  but  she  made  uj)  her  mind  at 
once :  she  called  him  Jlittunk.^!,  or  "  my  fatiier," 
The  old  Kowahqu'  was  very  proud  to  be  called  father. 
When  she  heard  her  husl)and  returning  she  ran  out 
and  told  him  that  a  great  Kewahqu'  was  in  the  camp, 
and  that  he  must  call  him  JPsiUiosc,  or  "father- 
in-law."  So  going  in  he  did  this,  and  the  Kcwahqu' 
was  still  more  pleased.  So  they  lived  with  liira, 
and  hunted  with  him.  lie  was  very  slcillful  in  the 
chase.  When  they  came  to  broad  and  deep  waters 
the  Kewahqu'  woukl  swim  them  with  his  son-in-law 
on  his  back.  He  could  run  faster  than  any  wild  an- 
imal. 

One  day  he  told  liis  children  to  go  away  to  a  great 


248  THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGICNDS. 

(listaiu'o.  "  Thoro  Is  a  p'oat  fonialo  KeNvalu|u'  coming 
to  liglit  1110.  Ill  the  Htr!ii;^l('  I  may  not  know  yon,  and 
may  Iniit  you."  So  tlioy  wt'iit  away  as  fast  ami  as  far 
as  tlioy  conlil,  l)ut  thoy  ht'aiil  tlw  ii<;liting,  the  most 
fiij^litful  noises,  howls,  yt'lls,  tlinniU'iing"  Ai\  orashinj^ 
of  wood  and  loeks.  After  a  time  the  man  determined 
to  see  the  fij^ht.  Wlien  he  jL?ot  to  the  phiee  he  saw 
a  lioriilJe  sii;ht:  l)i<;'  trees  u]>rooted,  the  giants  in  a 
deadly  striiggk'.  Then  the  Indian,  who  was  very  brave, 
and  who  was  afraid  that  his  father-in-law  would  he 
killed,  eame  up  and  hel|)ed  as  mueh  as  he  could,  and  in 
fact  so  much  that  between  them  thoy  killed  the  enemy. 
The  old  Kewali'iiT  was  badly  but  not  fatally  hurt, 
and  the  woman  was  very  glad  her  father  came  off  vic- 
torious. She  had  always  hoard  that  ;i  KewalKiu'  had 
a  piece  of  ice  for  a  heart.  If  this  can  be  taken  out, 
the  Kewalupi"  can  be  tamed  and  cuicd.  So  she  made 
a  pro})aration  or  medicine,  and  offered  it  to  him. 
He  did  not  know  what  it  was,  nor  its  strength,  so  ho 
swallowed  it,  and  it  gave  him  a  vomit.  She  saw  some- 
thing drop,  so  quietly  picked  It  u}) :  it  was  the  figure 
of  a  man  of  ice ;  it  w;is  the  Ivewah(|u's  heart.  She, 
not  being  seen  or  noticed,  jnit  it  in  the  fire,  when  he 
cried,  "  Daughter,  you  are  killing  me  now  ;  you  destroy 
my  strength."  Yet  she  made  him  take  more  of  the 
niedieine,  and  a  second  lieart  came  out.  This  she 
also  put  on  the  fire.  I5ut  when  a  third  came  ho 
grabbed  it  from  her  hand,  and  swallowed  it.  How- 
ever, he  was  almost  entirely  cured. 

Another  time  an    Indian  village  was  visited  by  a 


THE   CHEN 00  LEGENDS.  249 

Kmvaliqu*,  l)ut  he  \v:is  dnven  away  \>y  magic.  Tlu; 
])iM>[)lo  marked  croa.scH  on  tlio  trues  where  they  ex- 
ju'i'ted  the  KewalKju'  to  come.  There  was  a  j^reat  ex- 
citement amonj^  the  Indians,  expecting  to  hear  tlu'ir 
strange  visitor  with  his  frightful  noises.  It  was  the 
old  people  who  gave  the  lulvicc  to  mark  crosses  ou 
tiie  trees. 

Another  tinio  an  Indian  of  either  the  Passama- 
qnoddy  or  jSIareschite  trihe  was  turne<]  to  a  Kewaliqii'. 
The  last  time  he  was  rieen  was  ])y  a  party  of  Indian 
Inmters,  who  recognized  lilm.  lie  had  only  small 
strii>s  of  clothing.  "This  country,"  he  said,  "is  too 
warm  for  me.     1  am  iioing  to  a  colder  one." 

This  story  from  tlie  Passamncpioddy  Anglo-Indian 
niannscript  of  Mitchell  siipjilies  some  very  iin[)ortant 
deliciencies  in  the  ])receding  Micmac  version.  Vie 
are  told  that  the  heart  of  the  Chenoo  is  of  ice  iu 
human  figure.  This  human  figure  is  that  of  the  Ke- 
walupi'  himself,  or  rather  his  very  self,  or  microcosm. 
It  is  this,  and  not  the  liver,  which  is  swallowed  hy  the 
victor,  who  thus  adds  another  frozen  "  soul  "  to  his 
own.  Of  the  tlnee  vomited  hy  the  Kewah(pi',  two 
were  the  hearts  of  (iuemics  whom  he  had  conquered. 
He  could  not  give  up  his  own,  however.  It  is  much 
more  accordinc:  to  common  sense  that  the  woman 
should  have  given  the  caniilliul  the  magic  medicine 
which  made  him  yield  his  heart  than  that  he  should 
voluntarily  have  purged  himself.  In  the  ^licmac  talo 
he  merely  relieves  his  stomach ;  in  the  Passamaijuoddy 
version  he,  by  woman's  iuilueuce,  loses  his  ley  hciwL 


250  THE  ALGUNdUlN  LEOICXDS. 

It  is  interesting^  to  ohscrvc  that  the  use  of  the  Chris- 
tian eross  iy  in  the  additional  anecdote  described  as 
ma(/ic. 

It  is  the  main  point  in  the  Chcnoo  stories  that  this 
liorriblo  bein;;,  tliis  most  dovillsli  of  devils,  is  at  first 
hnman ;  perhaps  an  unusually  good  j^irl,  or  youth. 
From  iiaving  tlie  heart  once  chilled,  she  or  he  goes 
on  in  cruelty,  until  at  last  the  sutTercr  eats  the  heart 
of  another  Chcnoo,  especially  a  female's.  Then  utter 
wickedness  ensues.  It  is  more  tlian  i)robable  that 
this  leads  us  back  to  some  dark  and  terrible  Siuuuau 
superstition,  older  than  we  can  now  fathom.  Tlu're  is 
a  passage  in  the  Edda  which  its  translator,  Thorpe, 
tJiinks  can  never  be  cx})lained.  "  I  believe,"  he  wiites, 
"  the  difficulty  is  beyond  help."  The  lines  arc  as  fol- 
lows :  — 

"  Loki  scorched  up  ^ 
In  his  heurt's  affections, 
Had  found  a  liali'-hurnt 
Woman's  lieart. 
Loki  becanio  guileful 
from  that  wicked  woman  : 
tlieneo  in  the  world 
are  all  giantesses  come." 

Of  which  Thorpe  writes,  "  The  sense  of  this  and  the 
following  line  is  not  apparent.  They  stand  thus  in 
the  original:  Jjoki  qfhiarta  lyrdi  hrcRdu^funn  haun 
hdlfsridthm  hugstei?i  konu,  for  which  Grinmi  (Myth. 
Vorrede  37)  would  read  Loki  dt  hiarta  lundi  brenda, 
etc.,  jLoklus  comedU  cor  in  ncmore  assum^  invenit 

1  The  Edda,  p.  112. 


THE   ClIEXOO  LEGENDS.  261 

scmiustum  mentis  lapUhtn  mulicris."  Wluitever  ol)- 
scurity  exists  hero,  it  is  eviiknt  that  it  means  that 
Loki,  having  beeomo  bad,  grew  worse  after  having 
got  the  half-l)urnt  stone  of  a  woman's  soul.  That  is, 
his  own  heart,  half  ruineil,  became  utterly  so  aftrr  ho 
had  added  to  it  the  demoralized  Iniyxtein^  soul-stone, 
thought-stone,  or  hciirt  of  a  woman.  If  we  assume 
tliat  stone  and  heart  are  the  same,  the  dit'liculty  van- 
ishes. And  they  are  one  in  the  C'henoo,  who,  like 
Loki,  illustrates  or  symlxdizes  the  i)assage  from  good 
to  evil,  whieh  a  German  writer  declares  is  (juieker 
than  thought,  or  that  very  same  JIuji  wJiieh  the  Norse 
myth  puts  forwards  as  swiftest  of  all  runners.  Loki, 
not  as  yet  lost,  gets  the  stone  heart  of  a  giantess,  and 
becomes  an  utter  devil  at  once.  The  Chenoo  becomes 
an  utter  devil  when  \w  has  swallowed  the  thoiKjht- 
stonc  of  a  giantess,  and  so  does  Loki. 

The  Gid-Clienoo. 
(Mic'inac.) 

Of  the  ohl  time.  Far  up  the  Saguenay  River  a 
brancli  turns  oft'  to  the  north,  running  l)aek  into  the 
l.'uid  of  ice  and  snow.  Ten  families  went  up  tliis 
stream  one  autumn  in  their  canoes,  to  be  gone  all 
winter  on  a  hunt.  Among  them  was  a  beautiful  girl, 
twenty  years  of  age.  A  young  man  in  the  band  wished 
her  to  become  his  wife,  l)ut  she  Hatly  refused  him. 
Perhaps  she  did  it  in  such  a  way  as  to  wound  his 
pride ;  certainly  she  roused  all  that  was  savage  in 
him,  and  he  gave  up  all  his  mind  to  revenge. 


2r)'2  TllE  ALr.ONuU/y  /jy.ICXDS. 

Ilt^  was  skilU'd  in  incdiciiu',  or  in  nia<;ii',  so  lio  went 
into  the  woods  and  j^atiierod  an  herl)  whicli  makes 
lM'oi»K'  inscns*'''".  Then  stealing  into  tlu;  lodge  when 
all  were  aslrcjt,  he  held  it  to  the  girl's  face,  until  siio 
had  inhaled  the  odor  and  could  not  be  easily  awak- 
ened, (loing  out  he  made  a  hall  of  snow,  and  return- 
ing placed  it  in  the  hidlow  of  her  neck,  in  front,  just 
hekiw  the  throat.  Then  ho  retired  without  heing  dis- 
covered. So  she  <t)uld  not  awake,  while  the  eiiill 
went  to  her  heart.' 

Wlien  she  awoke  she  was  chilly,  sliivering,  and 
sick.  She  refused  to  cut.  'i'his  lasted  long,  and  her 
parents  hecajue  alarmed.  '^I'hey  in<iuii'ed  what  ailed 
lier.  She  was  ill-tempered  ;  she  said  that  nothing  was 
the  matter.  One  day,  hiiving  been  sent  to  the  sj)ring 
for  water,  she  remaimul  absent  so  long  that  her  motiier 
went  to  seek  her.  Ap])roaching  unseen,  she  observed 
her  greedily  eating  snow.  And  asking  her  what  it 
meant,  the  daughter  ex]ilaintMl  that  slu>  felt  within  a 
burning  senstition,  which  the  snow  relieved.  More 
than  that,  she  craved  the  snow;  the  taste  of  it  was 
pleasant  to  )icr. 

After   a   few  days   she   began   to   gi'ow  fierce,    as 

^  Tlie  Eskiino  Slmiuiiiis  aiid  (h(>  Indian  hnn-nin  are  familiar 
with  many  v(>rv  iiiu^cnioiis  and  sinf;'ular  ways  of  j)n)diu'iii<^  pro- 
IttnjTcd  illness  and  dcatli.  Thcro  is  one  known  to  a  very  few  old 
gypsies,  of  gradually  indueing  insanity  and  death,  which  I  have 
never  seen  noted  in  any  work  on  toxicology.  In  a  work  which 
I  lately  read,  it  was  positively  denied  that  there  was  any  such 
thing  as  a  "  lingering  poison  "  I 


77//;  CUKNQO  IJCfihWDS.  2o.3 

tlu)U;;li  she  wislu'd  to  kill  some  oi'c.  At  last  slio 
lji^io;n-,.,l  li,.|-  |)airiits  to  kill  her.  liithrrto  she  had 
lovrd  thrill  vny  Jiiuch.  Now  shf  told  thfiii  that  uii- 
luss  tlu'y  killed  hvv  slu'  would  ci'ituinly  be  thcii-  death. 
Her  whole  nature  was  heiu;;'  (-hanged. 

"  How  can  we  kill  you  ?  "'  her  mother  asked. 

"You  must  shoot  at  me,"  slu;  re})lied,  "with  seven 
arrows.'  And  if  you  can  kill  mo  with  seven  shuts 
all  will  he  well.      Hut  il"  vou  cannot.  I  >liall  kill  you." 

Seven  men  shot  at  her,  as  she  sat  in  the  wigwam. 
She  was  not  hound.  Every  arrow  struck  her  in  the 
breast,  but  she  sat  firm  and  uiunoved.  Forty-nino 
times  they  ])ierced  her :  from  time  to  time  she  looked 
up  with  an  eneou lading  smile.  A\'hen  the  last  arrow 
struck  she  fell  dead. 

Then  they  burned  the  body,  as  slie  had  dire(;ted. 
It  was  soon  reduced  to  ashes,  with  the  exception  of 
the  heart,  which  was  of  the  haidest  ici'.  This  re- 
(juired  nnicli  time  to  melt  and  break.  At  lust  all  was 
over. 

Sh(?  had  l)een  brought  nnder  the  power  of  an  evil 
spirit;  she  was  rapidly  being  changed  into  a  C'henoo, 
a  wild,  fierce,  nnconcpierable  being.  Ihit  she  knew  it 
all  the  while,  and  it  was  against  her  will.  So  she 
bogged  that  she  might  be  kiUed. 

The  Indians  left  the  ])lace  :  since  that  day  none  havo 
ever  retnrned  to  it.  They  feared  lost  some  small  part 
of  the  body  might  have  remained  nnconsumed,  and 

^  The  Mic'inac  version  gives  f/iais.  but  the  Clienoo  stories  aro 
evidently  very  ancient,  luid  refer  to  terroi-s  of  the  olden  time. 


264  THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

that  from  it  another  Chcnoo  would  rise,  capable  of 
killing  all  whom  she  met.^ 

1  Mr.  Rand  (manuscript)  gives  a  detailed  accoi!'-/,  of  an  In- 
dian who  went  mad  during  the  winter,  ran  away  u.iked  into  the 
wihlerness  among  the  snows,  and  was  unanimously  declared  to 
have  turned  into  a  Chenoo.  I  agree  with  Mr.  Hand  that  **  the 
historical  hasis  of  these  tales,  if  they  have  any,  may  be  the 
same,  —  a  case  of  lunacy  ;  fiction  and  figure  adding  the  iucred- 
ible  details." 


THUNDER  STORIES. 

Of  the  Girl  who  married  Mount  Katahdin^  and  how  all 
the  Indians  brought  about  their  own  liuin. 

(l\'Uobseot.) 

Of  the  old  time.  There  was  ouce  an  ^ndian  girl 
gathering  blueberries  on  Monnt  Katalulin.  And,  be- 
ing lonely,  she  said,  '"  I  would  that  1  had  a  hus- 
band !  "  And  seeing  the  great  mountain  in  all  its 
glory  rising  on  high,  with  the  red  sunlight  on  the  top, 
she  added,  "  I  wish  Katahdin  were  a  man,  and  would 
marry  me ! " 

All  this  she  was  heard  to  say  ere  she  went  onward 
and  up  the  mountain,  but  for  three  years  she  was 
never  seen  again.  Then  she  reappeared,  bearing  a 
babe,  a  beautiful  child,  but  his  little  eyebrows  were  of 
stone.  For  the  Spirit  of  the  Mountain  had  taken  her 
to  himself  ;  and  when  she  greatly  desired  to  return 
to  her  own  people,  he  told  her  to  go  in  peace,  but  for- 
bade her  to  tell  any  man  who  had  married  her. 

Now  the  boy  had  strange  gifts,  and  the  wise  men 
said  that  he  was  born  to  become  a  mighty  magician. 
For  when  he  did  but  point  his  fing(U*  at  a  moose, 
or  anything  which  ran,  it  would  drop  dead ;  and 
when  in  a  canoe,  if  he  pointed  at  the  flocks  of  wild 
ducks  or  swans,  then  the  water  was  at  once  covered 


25G      THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

with  the  floating  game,  and  they  gatliercd  thcni  in  as 
thi'V  listed,  and  tlirougli  that  boy  liis  mother  and  every 
one  had  food  and  to  s})are. 

Now  tliis  was  the  truth,  and  it  was  a  great  wonder, 
that  Katahdin  had  wedded  this  girl,  thinicing  with 
himself  and  his  wife  to  bring  up  a  child  who  shoidd 
buihl  up  his  nation,  and  make  of  the  Wabanaki  a 
mighty  race.  And  he  said,  "  Declare  unto  these  i)co- 
ple  that  they  are  not  to  incpiire  of  thee  who  is  the 
father  of  thy  child ;  truly  they  will  all  know  it  by  see- 
ing him,  for  they  shall  not  grieve  thee  with  im])«;rti- 
nencc."  Now  the  woman  had  made  it  known  that  slie 
would  not  be  (luestioned,  and  she  gave  them  all  wliat 
they  needed  ;  yet,  for  all  this,  they  coidd  not  refrain 
nor  restrain  themselves  from  talking  to  her  on  what 
they  well  knew  she  would  fain  be  silent.  And  one 
day  when  they  had  angered  her,  she  thought,  "  Truly 
Katahdin  was  right ;  these  people  are  in  nowise  wor- 
thy of  my  son,  neither  shall  he  serve  them  ;  he  shall 
not  lead  them  to  victory  ;  they  are  not  of  those  who 
make  a  great  nation."  And  being  still  further  teased 
and  tormented,  she  spake  and  said,  "  Ye  fools,  who 
by  your  own  folly  will  kill  yourselves ;  ye  nmd-wasps, 
who  sting  the  fingers  which  would  pick  ye  out  of  the 
water,  why  will  ye  ever  trouble  me  to  tell  you  what 
you  well  k?iow  ?  Can  you  not  see  who  was  the  father 
of  my  boy  ?  Behold  his  eyebrows  ;  do  ye  not  know 
Katahdin  by  them  ?  But  it  shall  be  to  your  exceed- 
ing great  sorrow  that  ever  ye  inquired.  From  this 
day  ye  may  feed  yourselves  and  find  your  own  veni- 
son, for  this  child  shall  do  so  no  more  for  you." 


THUNDER  STORIES.  257 

And  she  arose  and  went  her  way  into  the  woods  and 
up  tlio  mountain,  and  was  seen  on  earth  no  more. 
And  since  that  day  the  Indians,  wlio  should  have  been 
great,  liave  become  a  littk'  peoph'.  Truly  it  would 
have  been  wise  and  well  for  those  of  early  times  if 
they  could  have  held  their  toug;ues. 

This  remarkable  lei^end  was  related  to  me  by  ISIrs. 
]\Iarie  Sakis,  a  Penobscot,  a  very  clever  story-teller. 
It  gives  the  Full  of  Man  from  a  purely  Indian  stand- 
])()int.  Nothing  is  so  ctmtemptiblo  in  Indian  eyes  as 
a  want  of  dignity  and  idle,  lo([uaeious  teasing ;  there- 
fore it  is  made  in  the  mytli  the  sin  which  destroyed 
their  race.  The  tendency  of  the  lower  class  of  Amer- 
icans, especially  in  New  England,  to  raise  and  empha- 
size the  voice,  to  speak  continually  in  italics  and  sumll 
and  large  ca})itals,  witli  a  wide  disjday,  and  the  con- 
stant disposition  to  chaff  and  tease,  have  contributed 
more  than  any  other  cause  to  destroy  conMdence  and 
respect  for  them  among  the  Indians. 

Since  writing  the  foregoing  i)aragraph,  I  have  read 
Tlie  Abnakis,  by  Kev.  Kugene  Veti'(miile.  In  his 
chapter  on  the  Keligion  and  Superstition  of  these  In- 
dians he  gives  this  story,  but,  as  I  think,  in  a  cor- 
rupted form.  Firstly,  he  states  that  Pamola  (that  is, 
Ihunole),  who  is  the  evil  s])irit  of  the  niglit  air,  was 
tlie  Spirit  of  iSIount  Katahdin.  Now  these  are  cer- 
tainly at  present  two  very  distinct  beings,  which  are 
described  as  being  personally  cpiite  unlike.     Secondly, 

in  Vetromile's  story  the  mother  and  child  disappear 
17 


258  THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

in  consequence  of  the  child  having  inadt'crtcntly  killed 
an  Indian  by  pointing  at  him.  It  will  bo  seen  that 
this  feeble,  inqx^tent  conclusion  utterly  spoils  the  man- 
ifest meaning  of  the  whole  legend. 

Of  this  story  Vetrouiile  remarks  that  "  it  is,  of 
course,  a  superstitious  tale,  made  up  by  the  prolific 
imagination  of  some  Indians,  yet  we  can  perceive  in 
it  some  vestiges  of  the  fall  of  the  first  man  in  having 
transgressed  the  command  of  God,  and  how  it  could 
be  repaired  only  by  God.  We  can  also  trace  some 
ideas  of  the  mystery  of  the  Incarnation  of  the  Son  of 
God  in  the  womb  of  the  Blessed  Virgin  Mary,  mixed 
with  fables,  superstitions,  and  pagan  errors.  The  ap- 
pearance of  God  to  Moses  in  the  Burning  Bush  may 
be  glimpsed  in  Pamolc  appearing  to  the  Indian  on 
Mount  Katahdin,  and  so  forth." 

The  pilgrims  in  Rabchiis  did  not  point  out  scriptu- 
ral coincidences  with  greater  ingenuity  than  this.  It 
is  deeply  to  be  regretted  that  the  reverend  father's  en- 
tire knowledge  of  the  mythology  of  the  Abenakis  was 
limited  to  this  single  story.  (Vide  Bumole,  in  chap- 
ter on  Supernatural  Beings.)  It  may  be,  however, 
observed,  that  if  the  name  Bumole  or  Pamela  really 
means  "  he  curses  on  the  mountain,"  or  curse  on 
mountain,  it  was  natural  that  the  evil  si)irit  should  be 
supposed  to  be  on  the  mountain.  l*amola  was  per- 
haps at  an  early  period  the  spiiit  of  lightning,  and 
might  thus  be  very  easily  confused  with  Katahdin. 


THUNDER   STORIES.  259 

TFow  a  Hunter  i  sited  the  Thunder  Sj/irits  whit  dwell  in 

Mount  Katalidin. 

(  PassaniiKiUoddy .) 

N^harnayoo.  Of  old  times.  Once  an  Indian  went 
forth  to  hunt.  And  he  di'i)arted  from  tlie  east  branch 
of  the  Penobscot,  and  came  to  the  head  of  another 
l)ranch  that  leads  into  the  east  branch,  and  this  ho 
followed  even  to  the  foot  of  Mount  Katalidin.^  And 
there  he  hunted  Uiany  a  day  alone,  and  met  none,  till 
one  morning  in  midwinter  he  found  the  track  of  snow- 
shoes.  So  he  returned  to  his  camp ;  but  the  next  day 
he  met  with  it  again  in  a  far-distant  place.  And  thus 
it  was  that,  wherever  he  went,  this  track  came  to  him 
every  d-^y.  Then  noting  this,  as  a  sign  to  be  ob- 
served, J  '■  followed  it,  and  it  went  up  the  mountain, 
Katalidin,  which,  being  interpreted,  means  "  the  great 
mountain,"  until  at  last  it  was  lost  in  a  hard  snow- 
shoe  road  made  by  many  travelers.  And  since  it  was 
hard  and  even,  he  took  off  his  (Ujahnool;  (P.),  or 
snow-shoes,  and  went  ever  on  and  up  with  the  road ; 
and  it  was  a  strange  path  and  strange  was  its  ending, 
for  it  stopped  just  before  a  high  ledge,  like  an  im- 
mense wall,  on  a  platform    at  its  foot.     And   there 

^  This  minuteness  of  needless  detail  is  very  characteristic  of 
Indian  taU's.  I  do  not  think  that  it  is  introduced  for  the  sake  of 
h)oal  color,  or  to  give  an  air  of  trutliful  seeniinj?,  because  the  In- 
dian simply  believes  the  whole,  as  it  is.  I  think  the  reason  may 
he  that,  owing  to  their  love  of  adventure,  they  enjoy  the  mere 
recitation  of  topographical  details. 


260  THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

were  many  sig;ns  there,  as  of  many  peojJe,  yet  he  saw 
no  one.  And  as  ho  stayed  it  seemed  to  grow  stranger 
and  stranger.  At  hist  he  heard  a  sound  as  of  foot- 
steps  commg,  yet  within  the;  wall,  when  lo !  a  girl 
stepped  direetly  out  of  the  i)r(ieii)i('e  ujion  the  i)lat- 
form.  Ihit  though  she  was  beautiful  beyond  belief, 
he  was  afraid.  And  to  his  every  thought  she  an- 
swered in  words,  and  that  so  sweetly  and  kindly  and 
cleverly  that  he  was  soon  without  fear,  though  he  saw 
that  she  had  powerful  m'tefmlin^  or  great  magic 
power.  And  they  being  soon  pleased  one  with  the 
other,  and  wanting  eaeh  other,  she  brde  him  accom- 
pany her,  and  that  by  walking  directly  through  the 
rock.  "  Have  no  fear,"  said  she,  "but  advance  bold- 
ly !  "  So  he  obeyed,  and  lo  !  the  rock  was  as  the 
air,  and  it  gave  way  as  he  went  on.  And  ever  as 
they  went  the  maiden  talked  to  him,  answering  his 
thoughts,  so  that  he  spoke  not  aloud. 

And  anon  they  came  to  a  great  cavern  far  within, 
and  there  was  an  old  man  seated  by  a  fire,  and  the 
old  man  welcomed  him.  And  he  was  very  kindly 
treated  by  the  strange  pair  all  day :  in  all  his  life  he 
had  never  been  so  happy.  Now  as  the  night  drew 
near,  the  old  man  said  to  his  daughter,  "  Can  you  hear 
aught  of  your  brothers  ?  "  Then  she  went  out  to  the 
terrace,  and,  returning,  said,  "  No."  Then  anon  he 
asked  her  again,  and  she,  going  and  returning  as  be- 
fore, replied,  "  Now  I  hear  them  coming."  Then  they 
listened,  when  lo  ]  there  came,  as  at  the  door  without, 
a  crash  of  thunder  with  a  flash  of  lightning,  and  out 


THUNDER   STORIES.  261 

of  tlio  lij^lit  stepped  two  younjij  men  of  fp'oiit  beauty, 
but  like  ^iauts,  stupendous  unci  of  awful  niicn.  Aud, 
like  their  father,  tlieir  eyebrows  were  of  stone,  while 
their  eheeks  were  as  roeks. 

And  the  hunter  was  tohl  by  their  sister  that  when 
they  went  forth,  which  was  every  few  (hiys,  their 
father  said  to  them,  "Sons,  arise!  it  is  tiuic  now  for 
you  to  go  forth  over  the  world  and  save  our  friends. 
Go  not  too  near  the  trees,  but  if  you  sec  aught  that  is 
harmful  to  those  whom  we  love,  strike,  and  spare 
not ! "  Then  wIkt^  lliey  went  forth  tliey  Hew  on  high, 
among  the  elouds :  and  thus  it  is  that  the  Thunder 
and  Lightning,  whose  home  is  in  the  nnghty  Katah- 
din,  are  made.  And  when  the  thunder  strikes,  the 
brothers  are  shooting  at  the  enemies  of  their  friends. 

Now  when  the  day  was  done  the  hunter  returned  to 
his  home,  and  when  there,  found  he  had  been  gone 
seven  years.  All  this  I  have  heai-d  from  the  old  i)eo- 
l)]e  who  are  dead  and  gone. 

This  tale  was  told  me  by  Tomah  Josephs  (P.).  It 
seems  to  have  nothing  in  connnon  w  ith  the  very  widely 
S})read  myth  that  the  thunder  is  the  flaj)ping  of  the 
wings  of  a  giant  bird,  and  the  lightning  the  flashes  of 
its  eyes.  The  tradition  is  probably  of  Eskimo  origin, 
supernatural  beings  partially  of  stone  being  connnon 
to  (Greenland  and  Labrador.  Tliere  is  a  stiange  but 
entirely  accidental  rescnd)hince  between  this  stoiy  and 
Kip  Van  Winkle,  as  in  the  <1istant  sound  of  tlic  nine- 
pins like  low-nuittered  thuntler,  the  hospitable  enter- 


262  THE  ALOONilUIN  LEGENDS. 

taininont,  and  finally  the  sovon  years  as  one  day.  Ajv 
parent  resein})lances  are  veiy  deceptive.  In  the  Es- 
kimo mythology  the  /nfr.suf/at  or  lutdd/it,  who  are 
the  higher  or  benevolent  spirits,  protecting  mortals, 
are  distingnished  from  the  evil  ones  by  dwelling  in 
cliii's,  to  which  there  are  invisible  entrances. 

There  is  a  remarkable  resemblance  between  Katah- 
din  and  Ilrnngnir  of  the  Edda.  Ilrnngnir  has  a  face 
of  stiHie;  he  is  nntpiestionably  a  monntain  i)ersonified, 
as  Miss  Larned  declares:  ''His  stony  head  juerces 
the  bine  sky."  ^  Both  giants  are  the  typical  great 
mountain  of  their  respective  countries.  Ilrnngnir 
has  also  very  great  affinity  with  the  Chenoo  giant. 
lie  has  a  sf,()?iij  heart,  an  insatiable  ai)petite,  and  is 
cruel  and  brutal. 

The  Iroquois  have  the  very  stone  giants  —  or,  as 
Sclioolcraft  calls  them,  the  stonish  giants  —  them- 
selves, and  a  very  curious  picture  of  them  has  been 
preserved.^  Of  them  ho  remarks,  "Who  the  giants 
are  intended  to  symbolize  is  uncertain.  They  are 
represented  as  impenetrable  by  darts."  The  connec- 
tion bctv/een  the  stone  giants  of  the  Indians,  the  Es- 
kimo, and  the  Norsemen,  if  not  historical,  is  at  least 
identical  in  this,  that  they  all  typify  the  mountains. 

1  Tales  of  the  Elder  Edda,  p.  235. 

^  Vide  Ciisick's  Five  Nations,  2d  edition,  and  Schoolcraft's  In- 
dian Tribes,  vol.  i,  j).  429. 


TlIUNDEIl   STORIES.  2G3 

Tfie  Thunder  and  Lightning  Men. 
(Piissiuiiiiijiuxldy.) 

TliiH  is  truly  an  old  Iii<H:in  story  of  oltl  timo.  Once 
an  Indian  was  whirled  up  by  the  roaring-  wind  :  ho 
was  taken  uj)  in  a  thunder-storm,  and  set  down  ai^ain 
in  the  village  of  the  Thunders.'  In  after-times  he 
described  them  as  very  like  Inunan  lieings :  they  used 
bows  and  arrows  Qnh-hol'que'),  and  had  v*'ings. 

But  these  wings  can  be  laid  aside,  and  kept  for  use. 
And  from  time  to  time  their  chief  gives  these  Thun- 
ders orders  to  put  them  on,  and  tells  them  where  to 
go.  lie  also  tells  them  how  long  they  are  to  be  gone, 
and  warns  them  not  to  go  too  low,  for  it  is  sure  death 
for  them  to  be  caught  in  the  crotch  of  a  tree. 

The  great  chief  of  the  Thunders,  hearing  of  the 
stranger's  arrival,  sent  for  him,  and  received  hiui 
very  kindly,  and  told  him  that  he  woidd  do  well  to 
become  one  of  them.  To  which  the  num  being  willing, 
the  chief  soon  after  called  tdl  liis  peo])le  together  to 
see  the  ceremony  of  thunderifying^  the  Indian. 

Then  they  bade  him  go  into  a  square  thing,  or  box, 
and   while    in    it   he    lost   his    senses    and    b(!came  a 

1  This  tale  is  transcribed,  wth  very  little  alteration,  from  a 
manuscript  collection  of  tales  written  in  Indian-Enti^lisli  by  an 
Indian.  I  retain  the  word  thunderx  as  expressive  of  the  beings  in 
question.  It  has  for  title,  A  Story  called  "  .1/;  /mlidn  tramfonncd 
into  a  Thunder !  " 

'^  This  word  is  one  of  the  Indian  autiior's  own,  but  as  I  know 
of  no  synonym  for  it  I  i  etain  it.  It  is  certainly  not  worse  than 
"  Native- Americanizintf." 


204  THE  AinONilUIN  LF.Cl-XPS. 

Thmulvr.  TIhmi  tlu»y  lnoii^Iit  liiiii  a  pair  of  wiiij^s, 
and  lit'  |)iit  tliciii  oil.  So  lie  ti<>w  alioitt  liU«'  tlic  rest 
of  liic  'riiiiiidcrs  ;  \\v  lu'(Miii(>  (piiU>  like  tliciii,  and  fol- 
lowed all  tlu'ir  ways.  And  ho  said  tliat  they  always 
Hew  towards  tin.'  son'  n'  s/ioi)l\  or,  south,  and  that  the 
roar  auil  crash  of  tin-  thunder  was  tlu*  soun<l  of  their 
wini;s.  Their  ^reat  anuiseini'nt  is  to  play  at  hall 
across  the  sky.'  \\'lu;n  they  return  they  carefully  put 
away  tluiir  win^s  for  their  UL'xt  llight.  Tla-re  is  a  h\*j; 
bird  in  the  south,  and  this  they  arc;  always  trying  to 
kill,  hut  never  sueirecd  in  doinj^  so. 

They  made  h)n<;'  journeys,  and  always  took  hiiu 
with  them.  So  it  went  on  for  a  Ioul;-  time,  hut  it 
came  to  ])ass  that  the  Indian  hej^au  to  tire  of  his 
strani;!^  friends.  Then  he  told  tlu*  chief  that  ho 
wished  to  see  his  fanuly  on  earth,  and  the  sagamore 
listened  to  him  and  was  very  kind.  Then  he  called 
all  his  people^  to.y;ether,  and  said  that  their  hiother 
from  the  other  worhl  was  very  lonesome,  and  wished 
to  retuin.  Thev  were  all  verv  soi-ry  indeed  to  lose 
him,  hut  lu'cause  they  loved  him  they  let  him  have 
his  own  way,  and  deciiK'd  to  cairy  him  back  as^ain. 
So  l)iddinn'  him  ck)se  his  eyes  till  he  should  bo  on 
earth,  they  carried  him  down. 

Th-'  Indians  saw  a  nreat  thunder-storm  drawin<r 
near ;  they  heard  such  tlnuKhn*  as  they  never  knew 
bvfore,  and  then  somethini;'  in  the  sha])e  of  a  human 
beiuL;'   coming    down    with    lightning:   then    they  ran 

^  The  l^skiiiu)  say  that  the  li<;litniii<r  of  tlie  Northern  Iii<;hts  is 
caused  by  spirits  playing  at  ball  with  the  head  of  a  walrus. 


THUNDER  SToniES.  2(10 

t<)  the  Hpot  wlu'i'o  luf  Hat,  ami  it  was  tlujir  long-lost 
brotliiT,  who  had   Immmi  gone  sovun  years. 

He  lia<l  Ix'cii  ill  tlic  rhuii<h>r-woi-hl.  lie  told  thrill 
how  lu!  had  hecn  playiii;;  hall  witii  th*;  Thiiiuh  r-hoys  ; 
yes,  how  ho  iiad  i)fcii  tiirm d  into  a  real  Thunder  liini- 
Bulf. 

This  is  wliy  the  Indians  to  this  very  day  liave  a  linn 
belief  tliat  the  thunder  and  lit-htnin^;  we  hear  and  see 
arc  caused  by  (beings  or  spirits)  (eallcd)  in  Indian 
Jic(l-(l(i(/  i/vk  (or  thunder),*  because  they  see  them, 
and  have,  moreover,  actually  jiicked  U])  the  hal-diKja 
k'c/itsous(/iiy  or  thunder-bulh't.'-  It  is  of  many  dif- 
ferent kinds  of  stone,  but  always  of  the  same  sha]M?. 
Tlie  last  was  picked  nj)  ]>y  INster  Sabattis,'  one  of  the 
Passama(pioddy  tiilx;.  lie  has  it  yet.  lie  found  it 
in  a  crotch-root  of  a  s})ruce-tr(U!  at  Head  Harbor,  on 
the  Islaml  of  (^ainjiobello.  This  stone  is  a  sign  of 
good-luck  to  him  who  linds  it. 

^  The  miUMiscript  is  In  rr  «litliciilL  to  uiidiTstiiiid,  l)iit  tliis  is 
iiplJiiieiilly  tilt!  ri'ul  mt'tuiiuj^  of  it. 

-  Tlimul.'rbolt. 

"*  1  lu'iinl  of  th«!  existence  ol"  this  Icf^'iMid  ii  loii<i^  timo  lufori'  I 
found  it  ill  tln!  luiiiiiisi'iipt  collcctioM  obtiiiiicd  I'or  iiu!  by  Louis 
Mitchull.  It  is  very  curious  ;is  i)('iii<^  iui<jU('stioii:d)ly  of  Kskiiuo 
origin,  or  common  to  tliu  Rskimo  ;  also  hocauso  it  speaks  of  tlio 
Tlinndcrs  as  always  endeavoring  to  kill  a  great  bird  in  the  south. 
This  is  probably  the  thunder  or  storm  bird,  ealled  by  the  Pas- 
saiiuKjUoddy  Indians  W'l'-hnir^i'n  or  Wnrlimoseti,  that  is,  Wind- 
IJlower.  Another  legend  makes  TliuiKler  and  Lightning  the 
8ons  oi*  Mount  Katalidin. 

I  may  here  mention  that  1  am  well  acipiainted  with  old  Petcr 
Subuttis,  the  possessor  of  tlie  "  thunder-bullet." 


2GG  THE  ALGONQUIN  r.EGKNDS. 

TIic  tluiiulcr  Is  the  Honiid  of  tlio  wiiij^s  of  tho  men 
who  lly  iilfovo.  Tho  lightning  wo  hoc  is  tho  lire  and 
Biiioko  of  tlieir  pipos. 

Of  tho  Wonum  who  married  the  Thunder,  and  of  tJieir 

Hoy. 

(PiiHSiimjuiiKuldy.) 

Oiioc  a  woman  wiint  to  ilio  od/^^o  of  a  hdcc^ '  and  lay 
down  to  sU't'j).  As  sho  awoke,  sho  saw  a  {^rcat  ser- 
pent, with  {^litteruifjf  eyes,  crawl  from  the  water,  and 
stealthily  ajjproach  her.  Siie  had  no  power  to  resist 
his  end)raee.  After  lier  return  to  her  peoi)lc  her 
condition  b(!trayed  itself,  and  she  was  nmch  j)ersc- 
ciited ;  tliey  i)nrsued  her  with  stieks  and  stones,  howl- 
in*^  ahnst;. 

She  fled  from  the  village  ;  she  went  afar  into  wild 
phiees,  and,  sittinp^  down  on  the  j'rass,  wept,  wishing 
that  she  were  dead.  As  she  sat  and  wailed,  a  very 
beautiful  girl,  dressed  in  silver  and  gold,'-^  ap})eared, 
and  after  lifitening  to  her  sad  story  said,  '^  Follow 
me  I 

Then  they  went  up  on  high  into  a  mountain,  through 
three  roeks,  until  they  eame  into  a  ])leasa;it  wigwam 
witii  a  very  smooth  floor.     An  old  man,  so  old  that 

*  It  is  inipossiblc  to  distinguisli  in  any  Indian  story  between 
lake  and  sea. 

'^  IJoth  silver  and  gold  wero  known  in  jirt'-Cohunbian  times  to 
the  Indians.  I  had  a  consin  who  once  found  a  very  old  stoue 
pipe  hi  which  a  small  piece  of  gold  had  been  set.  Particles 
of  gold  are  found  in  many  mount;iiu-streams  iu  New  England. 


rilUNDElt  STOIUES.  207 

111-!  was  all  white,  camo  to  iiicot  tluin.  Tlicii  lu*, 
takiii;.;;  Ji  slioit  stick,  hade  lici'  tlaiifc.  lie  ho^an  to 
Hiii;;,  and  as  he  saiiLf  slic  ^avo  birtli,  one  by  one,  to 
twelve  seriH'Uts.  Tlicsi;  the  ohl  man  kiUed  in  sue- 
eession  with  his  stick  as  they  were  born.  Then  she 
had  heconie  thin  a_i;ain,  and  was  in  lier  natnral  form. 

The  oUl  man  had  a  son,  Ba(hiwk,  the;  Thnnder,  and 
a  (hiu^diter,  I\H(Nrk-((tnkit/)ir,  the  Lightning,  an«l  when 
TIuukU'i-  letnrned  ho  offered  to  take  lier  hack  to  her 
own  people,  but  hIic  refused  to  go.  Then  the  old  man 
Baid  to  his  son,  "  Take  her  for  your  wifii  and  be  good 
to  her."     So  they  were  married. 

In  time  she  bore  a  son.  When  the  boy  could  stand, 
the  old  man,  who  never  leaves  the  mountain,  eaUed  him 
to  stand  before  him,  while  ho  fastened  wings  to  the 
ehild.  He  was  soon  able,  with  these  wings,  to  make  a 
noise,  whieh  greatly  pleased  the  grandfather.  When  a 
storm  is  ai)proaehing,  the  distant  rumbling  is  tlu;  nuit- 
tering  thunder  made  by  the  ehild,  but  it  is  IJdddtrk^ 
his  father,  who  comes  in  the  dark  eloud  and  makes 
the  roaring  crash,  while  Psawk-tankaplc  flashes  her 
lightnings. 

In  after  days,  when  the  woman  visited  her  people, 
she  told  them  that  they  never  need  fear  the  thunder 
or  lightning. 


AT-O-SIS,  THE  SERPENT. 

How  Two  Girls  iverc  chanfjcd  to   Water-Snakes,  and  oj 
Two  Others  that  became  Mermaids. 

(PassamiKiuoddy.) 

POCUMKWESS,  or  Tliorouglifiiro,  is  sixty-five  milos 
from  Campobollo.  There  was  an  Indian  village  there 
in  the  old  times.  Two  young  Indian  girls  had  a 
strange  habit  of  absenting  themselves  all  day  every 
Sunday.  No  one  knew  for  a  long  time  where  they 
went  or  what  they  did.  V>\\t  this  was  how  tliey  passed 
their  time.  They  would  take  a  eanoe  and  go  six  miles 
down  the  Grand  Lake,  where,  at  the  north  end,  is  a 
great  ledge  of  rock  and  sixty  feet  of  water.  There 
they  stayed.  All  day  long  they  ran  about  naked  or 
swam  ;  they  were  wanton,  witeh-like  girls,  liking  ec- 
eentric  and  forbidden  ways. 

They  kept  this  up  for  a  long  time.  Once,  while 
they  were  in  the  water,  an  Indian  who  was  hunting 
si)ied  them.  He  came  nearer  and  nearer,  unseen. 
He  saw  them  come  out  of  the  water  and  sit  on  the 
shore,  and  then  go  in  again  :  but  as  he  looked  they 
grew  longer  and  longer,  until  they  became  snakes. 

He  went  home  and  told  this.  (But  now  they  had 
been  seen  by  a  man  they  nuist  keep  the  serpent 
form.)      Men  of   the  village,  in  four  or  live  canoes, 


AT-OSIS,    TfffC   SERPENT.  209 

went  to  find  thcni.     They  foiiiul  tho  canoo  and  clotlios 

of  tho  girls ;    nothing  more.     vV  ivsw  days  after,  two 

men  on  Grand  Lake    saw  the    snake-girls  on   shore, 

showing  their  heads  over  the  buslies.     One  began  to 

sing, 

"  N'ktit'h  icbon  iut, 

Qii'spen  lua  kd  ovvse." 

Wc  are  [((jinj^  to  stay  in  this  lako 

A  few  (lays,  and  then  go  down  tho  river. 

Bid  adieu  to  our  friends  for  us  ; 

We  arc  going  to  the  great  salt  water. 

After  singing  this  they  sank  into  the  water.      They 
had  very  long  hair. 

A  pictnro  of  the  man  looking  at  tho  snake-girls 
was  sera})ed  for  me  by  the  Indian  who  told  n\e  this 
story.  The  pair  were  represented  as  snakes  with  fe- 
male heads.  When  I  first  heard  this  talc,  I  promptly 
set  it  down  as  nothing  else  but  the  ]Melusina  story 
derived  from  a  Canadian  French  source.  But  I  have 
since  found  that  it  is  so  widely  spread,  and  is  told  in 
so  many  different  forms,  and  is  so  dce])ly  connected 
with  tribal  traditions  and  totems,  that  there  is  now 
no  doubt  in  my  mind  that  it  is  at  least  ]U'e-Coluni- 
bian. 

Another  and  a  very  curious  version  of  this  story 
was  obtained  by  Mrs.  AV^.  Wallace  Brown,  who  has 
been  the  chief  discoverer  of  curious  Indian  lore  among 
the  Passamaquoddies,     It  is  called: 


270  rilE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

Ne  II was,  the  Mermaid. 

A  long  time  ago  tliero  was  an  Iiulian,  with  his  wife 
and  two  daughters.  They  lived  by  a  great  lake,  or 
the  sea,  and  the  mother  told  her  girls  never  to  go  into 
the  water  there,  for  that,  if  they  did,  something  would 
happen  to  them. 

They,  however,  deceived  her  repeatedly.  When 
swimming  is  prohibited  it  becomes  delightful.  The 
shore  of  this  lake  sa)uli<  away  out  or  slopes  to  an 
i.  hind.  One  day  they  went  to  it,  leaving  their  clothes 
on  the  beach.     The  parents  missed  them. 

The  father  went  to  seek  them.  lie  saw  them  swim- 
ming far  out,  and  called  to  them.  The  girls  swam  up 
to  the  sand,  but  could  get  no  farther.  Their  father 
asked  them  why  they  could  not.  They  cried  that  they 
had  grown  to  be  so  heavy  that  it  was  impossible. 
They  were  all  slimy  ;  tluiy  grew  to  be  snakes  from 
below  the  waist.  After  sinking  a  few  times  in  this 
strange  slime  they  became  very  handsome,  with  long 
black  hair  and  large,  bright  black  eyes,  with  silver 
bands  on  their  neck  and  arms. 

When  their  father  went  to  get  their  clothes,  they 
began  to  sing  in  tlie  most  extpiisite  tones  :  — 

"  Leave  them  tliere  ! 
Do  not  touch  them  I 
Leave  them  there  ! " 

Hearing  this,  their  mother  began  to  weep,  but  the 
girls  kept  on  :  — 

"  It  is  all  our  own  fault, 
liiit  do  not  blame  us  ; 


AT-O-SfS,    THE   SERPENT.  271 

'T  will  1)0  noiio  the  worse  for  you. 
WIii'U  you  ^-o  ill  your  cjiiioc, 
Tliou  you  need  nut  (kkMIu  ; 
Wo  shall  carry  it  along  1 " 

And  so  it  was  :  when  their  paionts  wont  in  the  car 
noe,  the  girls  curried  it  safely  on  everywhere. 

One  day  some  Indians  saw  tlie  girls'  elotlies  on  the 
beach,  and  so  looked  out  for  the  wearers.  They  found 
them  in  the  water,  and  pursued  them,  and  tried  to 
capture  tliem,  hut  they  were  so  slimy  that  it  was  im- 
possible to  take  them,  till  one,  cr.tching  liold  of  a  mer- 
maid by  her  long  black  hair,  cut  it  off. 

Then  the  girl  began  to  rock  the  c^anoe,  and  threat- 
ened to  ujjset  it  unless  her  hair  was  given  to  her  again. 
The  fellow  who  had  played  the  trick  at  first  refused, 
but  as  the  mermaids,  or  snake-maids,  promised  that 
they  should  all  be  drowned  unless  this  was  done,  the 
locks  were  restored.  And  the  next  day  they  were 
heard  singing  and  were  seen,  and  on  her  who  had  lost 
her  hair  it  was  all  growing  as  long  as  ever. 

We  may  very  easily  detect  the  hand  of  Lox,  the 
Mischief  Maker,  in  this  last  incident.  It  was  the  same 
trick  which  Loki  played  on  Sif,  the  wife  of  Odin. 
That  both  Lox  and  Loki  were  comi)elled  to  replace 
the  hair  and  make  it  grow  again  —  the  one  on  the 
snake-maid,  the  other  on  the  goddess  —  is,  if  a  coin- 
cidence, at  least  a  very  remaricable  one.  It  is  a  rule 
with  little  exception  that  where  we  have  to  deal  with 
myths  which  have  passed  into  romances  or  tales,  that 


272      THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

which  was  originally  one  character  becomes  many, 
just  as  the  king  who  has  but  one  name  and  one  ap- 
pearance at  court  assumes  a  score  when  he  descends 
to  disguise  of  low  degree  and  goes  among  the  people. 
But  when,  in  addition  to  characteristic  traits,  we  have 
even  a  single  anecdote  or  attribute  in  connnon,  the 
identification  is  very  far  advanced.  When  not  one, 
but  many,  of  these  coincidences  occur,  we  are  in  all 
probability  at  the  truth.  Thus  we  find  in  the  mythol- 
ogy of  the  Wabanaki,  as  in  the  Edda,  the  chief  evil 
being  indulging  in  mere  wantim,  comic  mischief,  to 
an  extent  not  to  be  found  in  the  devil  of  any  other 
race  whatever.  Here,  in  a  mythical  tale,  the  same 
mischief  maker  steals  a  snake-girl's  hair,  and  is  com- 
pelled to  re})lace  it.  In  the  Edda,  the  corresponding 
mischief  maker  steals  the  hair  of  a  goddess,  and  is 
also  forced  to  make  rf.^stitution.  Yet  this  is  only  one 
of  many  such  reseniblanccs  in  these  tales.  It  will  be 
observed  that  in  both  cases  the  hair  of  the  loser  is 
made  to  grow  agaiii.  But  while  the  incident  has  in 
the  Edda  a  meaning,  as  appears  from  its  context,  it 
has  none  in  the  Indian  tale.  All  that  we  can  con- 
clude from  this  is  that  the  Wabanaki  tale  is  subse- 
quent to  the  Norse,  or  taken  from  it.  The  incidents 
of  tales  are  often  remembered  when  the  plot  is  lost. 
It  is  certainly  very  remarkable  that,  wherever  the 
mischief  maker  occurs  in  these  Indian  tales,  he  in 
every  narrative  does  something  in  common  with  his 
Norse  prototype. 


AT-O-SIS,    THE  SERPENT.  273 

Of  the  Woman  who  loved  a  Serpent  who  lived  in  a  Lake, 

(PassaiuiKiuoddy.) 

Of  old  times.  Tliore  was  a  very  beautiful  woman. 
She  turned  the  heads  of  all  the  men.  She  married, 
and  her  husband  died  very  soon  after,  but  she  imme- 
diately took  another.  Within  a  single  year  she  had 
five  husbands,  and  these  were  the  cleverest  and  hand- 
somest and  bravest  in  the  tribe.  And  then  she  mar- 
ried again. 

This,  the  sixth,  was  such  a  silent  man  that  he  passed 
for  a  fool.  But  he  was  wiser  than  people  thought.  Ho 
came  to  believe,  by  thinking  it  over,  tliat  this  woman 
had  some  strange  secret.  He  resolved  to  find  it  out. 
So  he  watched  her  all  the  time.  He  kept  his  eye  on 
her  by  night  and  by  day. 

It  was  summer,  and  she  proi)osed  to  go  into  the 
woods  to  pick  berries,  and  to  camp  there.  By  and  by, 
when  they  were  in  the  forest,  she  suggested  that  he 
sliould  go  on  to  the  spot  where  they  intended  to  re- 
main and  build  a  wigwam.  He  said  that  he  would  do 
so.  But  he  went  a  little  way  into  the  woods  and 
watched  her. 

As  soon  as  she  believed  that  he  was  gone,  she  rose 
and  walked  rapidly  onwards.  He  followed  her,  un- 
seen. She  went  on,  till,  in  a  deep,  wild  place  among 
the  rocks,  she  came  to  a  pond,  She  sat  down  and 
sang  a  song.  A  great  foam,  or  froth,  rose  to  the  sur- 
face of  the  water.  Then  in  the  foam  appeared  the 
tail  of  a  serpent.     The  creature  was  of  immense  size. 

18 


274  THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

The  woman,  wlio  bad  laid  aside  all  her  <^armcnts,  em- 
braced the  serpent,  wliicli  twined  around  her,  envelop- 
ing all  h«'r  limhs  and  body  in  his  folds.  The  husband 
watehed  it  all.  He  now  understood  that,  the  venom  of 
the  ser[)ent  having  entered  the  woman,  she  had  saved 
lier  life  by  transferring  it  to  others,  who  died. 

lie  went  on  to  the  camping  ground  and  built  a  wig- 
wam, lie  made  up  two  beds ;  he  ])uilt  a  fire.  His 
wife  came.  She  was  earnest  that  there  should  be  only 
a  single  bed.  He  sternly  bade  her  lie  by  herself.  She 
was  afraid  of  him.  She  laid  down,  and  went  to  sleep. 
He  arose  three  times  during  the  night  to  rei)lenish  the 
fire.  Every  time  he  called  her,  and  there  was  no  an- 
swer. In  the  morning  he  shook  her.  She  was  dead. 
She  had  died  by  the  poison  of  the  serpent.  They  sunk 
lier  in  the  pond  where  the  snake  lived. 

I  do  not  omit  this  ghastly  and  re]nilsive  legend  for 
the  following  reasons  :  One  might  hastily  conclude, 
from  its  resemblance  to  the  old  legend  of  the  origin  of 
the  Merovingian  family,  that  this  idea  of  the  wonum 
with  the  horrible  water  spirit  for  a  lover  was  of  Cana- 
dian French  origin.  But  a  story  like  it  in  the  main 
detail  is  told  by  the  Indians  of  Guiana,  and  that  of 
the  Faithless  Wife,  given  in  Kink's  Tales  and  Tra- 
ditions of  the  Eskimo  (p.  143),  is  almost  the  same. 
But  in  the  latter  the  husband  revenges  himself  by 
stuffing  the  woman  full  of  poisonous  vermin.  Kink 
says  that  he  had  five  different  versions  of  this  tale,  and 
that  one  was  from  Labrador,  a  country  often  traveled 


aEPrT'NA(JA-mi55S: 


THE    WOMAN    AND    THE    SERPENT 


AT-O-Srs,    TITE  SERPENT.  275 

by  the  Micmaes,  and  (ivcn  l)y  the  Peuobscots  and  Pas- 
saiiKuiuoddies ;  1  myself  knowing  one  of  the  hitter  who 
has  l)een  there.  1  conjecture  that  thi.s  tale  sets  forth 
tlie  ahorij^inal  idea  of  the  origin  of  a  certain  disease 
siii)[)osed  to  have  come  from  America.  It  is  i)opularly 
believed  amonjj  the  vulvar  that  this  disease  can  bo 
transferred  to  another  person,  thereby  removing-  it 
from  the  first.  Of  this  the  Rev.  Thistleton  Dyer,  in 
his  Folk  Lore  of  Sliak'si)eare,  says,  "  According  to 
an  old  but  erroneous  belief,  infection  comnuuiicated 
to  another  loft  the  infecter  free  ;  in  allusion  to  which 
Thiion  of  Athens  (Act  IV.  3)  says,  — 

"  *  I  will  not  kiss  thoo ;  then  the  rot  returns 
To  thy  own  lips  agiiin.'  " 

Bonifacius,  llistoria  Ludicra,  has  collected  all  the 
instances  known  to  classical  anticpiity  of  women  who 
had  serpent  lovers.  The  kings  of  the  early  races  of 
Central  America  laid  great  stress  on  the  fact  that 
they  were  descendants  of  seri)cnts.  One  could  fill  a 
volume  with  all  thi;  Aiab,  Hindoo,  and  other  Oriental 
tales  belonging  to  the  beloved  of  "  ophitic  monsters." 

I  am  indebted  for  this  very  curious  and  ancient 
tale  to  Governor  Tomali  Josephs,  of  Peter  Dana's 
Point,  Maine. 

The  Mother  of  Serpents. 
(Passamaquoddy.) 

There  was  once  a  couple  well  advanced  in  years. 
They  were  powerful  and  rich  in  the  Indian  fashion, 
but  they  were  unhappy  because  they  had  no  children. 


276  THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

This  was  near  the  river  St.  John's,  on  the  shore  of 
a  small  hike. 

After  the  wonian  had  gone  in  vain  to  all  the  medi- 
cine men  and  iiitcoulin^  she  heard  of  an  old  doetress, 
or  witeh,  who  lived  not  very  far  off.  And  though 
hope  was  almost  dead,  the  witch  was  consulted. 

She  gave  the  wife  some  herbs,  and  bade  her  steep 
them  in  a  pot  out-of-doors,  and  then  let  them  boil. 
When  the  vessel  should  dance  over  the  flame,  the  pro- 
pitious moment  would  be  at  hand. 

Everything  succeeded  ac(u)rding  to  the  witch's  pre- 
diction. A  few  days  after  she  ai)peared  in  the  town. 
The  mother,  who  was  a  very  prou<l  woman,  had  in 
advance  hung  up  an  Indian  cradle  with  very  fine  or- 
naments. The  old  woman  was  very  dirty,  poor,  and 
sfpialid.  The  proud  woman  was  furious  at  the  visit, 
which  mortified  her  in  every  way.  She  drove  the 
witch  away  with  latter  words,  bidding  her  begone 
with  her  rags.  The  old  woman  went  away  mutter- 
ing, "  That  woman  —  too  proud  —  too  ugly  proud  — 
I  '11  see."  1 

AYhat  she  saw  was  bad  for  the  mother.  She  took 
some  more  herbs  from  her  box  and  threw  them  in  the 
fire,  crying  with  a  lowA  voicc^ '"'' At-o-sis  !  At-o-sis/^^ 
and  Imitated  the  motions  of  a  snake. 

When  the  pro  ad  woman  was    confined,  she   gave 

birth  to  two  large  serpents.     They  had  each  a  white 

ring  round  the  neck  and  red  stripes  down  the  sides. 

As  soon  as  they  were  born  they  went  rapidly  to  the 

^  The  story  was  narrated  in  Indian-English. 


AT-O-SIS,    rilE  SEnPKXT.  277 

lake,  and  (lisai)peaie(l  in  its  wator.     They  have  been 
seen  there,  now  and  then,  ever  Hinec. 

ISho  wlio  j^avo  birth  to  thoni  was  a  Mohawk,  anil  she 
is  called  the  Mother  of  Serpents. 

Another  Passanuniuoddy  tale  gives  the  following  ac- 
count of  the  origin  of  the  Serj)cut-raee. 

Once  there  was  an  Indian  sorcerer  came  to  a  wig- 
wam where  there  was  a  man  who  had  a  very  handsome 
<langhter. 

The  magician  wished  to  win  the  girl ;  the  fatlier 
made  up  his  mind  tliat  he  should  not  have  her. 

The  magician  told  them  that  he  was  very  wealthy, 
and  had  a  great  lodge  lillcd  with  furs  and  wampum. 
It  was  of  no  use. 

Then  he  told  the  father  that  if  he  would  go  and  cast 
his  lines  in  a  certain  place  he  wouhl  catch  as  many 
of  the  finest  fish  as  he  wanted.  The  old  man  went, 
but  took  his  daugliter  with  him. 

AVhen  they  returned,  loaded  with  fish,  the  nuigician, 
smiling,  said  to  the  girl  with  great  mystery,  "  Wlu'U 
you  liavc  cooked  these  fish,  always  throw  away  the 
tail,  and  begin  by  eating  tlic  head  first." 

lie  knew  very  well  that  her  curiosity  and  jierversity 
would  make  her  disobey  him.  She  waited  with  imi)a- 
tience  till  the  man  had  left,  when  she  hurried  to  cook 
and  eat  the  fish.  Thereby  she  became  a  mother,  and 
the  magician  had  his  revenge. 


278  riiK  ALcnxQUiN  legends. 

On' (/In  of  the  lilack  Snakes. 
(russaiiiiii|ii<Kl(l}'.) 

Far  away,  wvy  far  in  llu;  north,  tlicrii  tlwolt  by  tho 
bonhn*  of  a  ^ivat  lakt*  a  man  and  liis  wife.  Tlicy 
had  no  children,  antl  the  woman  was  very  heantiful 
and  passionate. 

TJMi  hdctj  was  frozen  over  dnrin;^-  the  greater  part 
of  the  ycnir.  One  (hiy  wiien  thi«  woman  ent  away  tho 
ice,  slio  saw  in  the  water  a  Inij^Iit  pair  of  large  eyes 
looking  steadily  at  her.  They  charmed  her  so  that 
she  coidil  not  move.  Then  she  distinguished  a  hand- 
some faee;  it  was  that  of  a  line  slender  yoimg  man. 
lie  came  c-nt  of  the  water.  J  lis  eyes  sec^med  l)righter 
and  more  fascinating  than  ever  ;  ho  glittered  from 
head  to  foot;  on  his  breast  was  a  largo  shining  sil- 
very plate. 

The  woman  learned  that  this  was  At-o-sis,  tho  Ser- 
pent, bnt  she  retnrned  his  (Mnbraees  and  held  eonver- 
sation  with  him,  and  was  so  charmed  with  her  h)ver 
that  she  not  only  met  him  more  than  once  every  day, 
but  even  went  forth  to  see  him  in  the  night. 

Her  husbanil,  noticing  these  frequent  absences,  asked 
her  why  she  went  forth  so  friHjiiently.  Sho  replied, 
"To  get  the  fresh  air." 

The  weather  grew  warmer ;  the  iee  left  the  lake ; 
grass  and  leaves  were  growing.  Then  the  woman 
waited  till  her  husband  slept,  and  stole  out  from  the 
man  whom  she  kissed  no  more,  to  the  lover  whom 
she  fondled  and  kissed  more  than  ever. 


AT-O-SIS,   THE  SEUrENT,  279 

At  last  the  liuslniiul'.H  siis|»i('i()Ms  lu'ln^  fairly  aroiisnl, 
lu'  r»'.s()lv«'(l  to  watch  lur.  To  do  this  ho  sai«l  tiiut 
he  Nvouhl  ht!  ahsoiit  for  thrro  <lays.  Ihit  In;  rrturiu.".l 
at  the  end  of  tliu  first  day,  and  found  that  sho  was 
ahscnt.  Ah  sho  caniu  in  ho  ol>st>rv(>d  Honu;thin<^  liku 
Hilvt'iy  Hoaltis  on  tho  logs.  IIo  asUod  what  they  woro. 
She  ro})lit'd,  Ih'oorhcu.^ 

Uo  was  still  dlssatislied,  and  said  that  ht;  would  ho 
o;<)nu  for  one  day.  He  went  to  the  top  of  a  hill  not 
far  distant,  whcnee  he  watcluKl  her.  Sho  wont  to  tho 
shoio,  :ind  sat  thcic.  liy  ami  by  there  ros»;  uj)  out 
of  the  hdu',  at  a  distance,  what  seemed  to  ho  a  l»ri;4htly 
shining'  })ieee  of  iee.  It  eain(!  to  tlu;  strand  and  roso 
from  the  water.  It  was  a  very  tall  and  very  hand- 
some man,  dressed  in  silver.  His  wift;  clasped  tho 
bright  stranger  in  her  arms,  kissing  him  again  and 
again. 

The  husband  was  awed  by  this  sti'ange  event.  Ho 
went  home,  and  triisd  to  persuade  his  wife  to  leave  tho 
place  an<l  to  return  to  her  peoi»le.  1  his  she  refused 
to  do.  He  dei)arted  ;  ho  left  her  forever.  But  her 
father  and  mother  eame  to  find  her.  They  found  her 
there ;  they  dwelt  with  her.  Every  day  sho  brought 
to  them  furs  and  meat.  They  asked  her  whence  sho 
got  them.  "  I  have  another  husband,"  she  rejjlied  ; 
"one  who  suits  me.  The  (me  I  had  was  bad,  and  did 
not  use  me  well.  This  one  brings  all  the  animals  to 
me."     Then  sho  sent  them  av>ay  with  many  i)reseiits, 

^  N^iikmnhnU :  coins  of  iiU  sizes  luimincrcd  out  by  the  Indiiins 
and  made  into  pin-brooclies. 


280  THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

telling  tlicni  not  to  return  until  the  ice  luul  formed ; 
that  was  in  the  autumn. 

AVlien  they  returned  she  had  l)ecome  white.  She 
was  with  young,  and  soon  gave  birth  to  her  oft'si)ring. 
It  consisted  of  many  serpents.  The  parents  went 
homo.  As  they  departed  she  said  to  them,  *'  When 
you  come  again  you  may  sec  me,  but  you  will  not 
know  me." 

Years  after  some  hunters,  roaming  that  way,  re- 
membered the  tale,  and  looked  for  the  wigwam.  It 
was  there,  but  no  one  was  in  it.  J5ut  all  the  woods 
about  the  place  were  full  of  great  Idaek  snakes,  which 
would  rise  up  like  a  human  being  and  look  one  in 
the  face,  then  glide  away  without  doing  any  harm. 


THE  PAirrRirxiE. 

The  Adventures  of  the  Great  Hero  Valoweeh^  or  the 

l\irfri(/ije. 

(Micmac.) 

Wec-yig-yik-kescyook.  A  tale  of  old  times.  Two 
men  once  lived  together  in  one  wigwam  in  the  woods, 
on  the  border  of  a  beautiful  lake.  Many  hard-wood 
trees  made  their  pictures  in  it.  One  of  these  Indians 
was  Pulowech,  the  Partridge  in  tlie  Micmae  tongm;, 
but  who  is  called  by  the  Passamacpioddy  Mitehlhess  ; 
but  the  other  was  Wejek  (M.),  the  'J'ree  Partridge. 

Now  it  befell  tluit  one  day  Pulowech  was  walking 
along  the  shore,  when  it  was  winter,  and  he  bchehl 
three  girls,  fair  and  fine,  with  ilowing  hair,  sitting  on 
the  ice  braiding  their  locks.  Then  he  knew  that  they 
were  of  the  fairy  kind,  who  dwell  in  the  water  ;  and, 
verily,  these  were  plentier  of  old  than  they  are  now, 
—  to  our  sorrow  be  it  said,  for  they  were  good  com- 
l)any  for  the  one  who  couhl  g(;t  them.  And  Pulowech, 
knowing  this,  said,  "  I  will  essay  this  thing,  and  j)er- 
cliancc  I  may  catch  one  or  two  of  them  ;  which  will 
be  a  gTcat  comfort,  for  a  pretty  girl  is  a  nice  thing 
to  have  about  the  wigwam."  So  he  scuif'ht  to  secure 
them  by  stealing  softly  along  ;  but  one  cried,  "  Xe 
miha  skedap  /  "  "I  see  a  man  I  "  P.,  and  they  all 
went  head  over  heels,  first  best  time,  into  the  water ; 


282  THE  ALGONQUIN  LECENDS. 

and  v^crlly  that  was  a  cold  duck  for  Deccnibcr  in  the 
Bay  ol"  Fundy. 

iiiit  though  Pulovvech  had  never  hunted  iov  sea- 
girls,  yet  he  had  fished  for  seals,  who  are  greatly  akin 
unto  them,  being  almost  as  slii)pery  ;  and  wotting  well 
that  no  man  hath  the  mitten  till  he  is  refused  thirty 
times  and  many  more,  he  went  about  it  in  another 
wise.  For  this  time  he  gat  many  fir  boughs,  strewing 
them  about  as  if  blown  by  the  wind,  and  hiding  him- 
self behind  them,  again  came  np  and  made  a  sudden 
dart.  Then  the  maids,  crying  as  before,  "iVe  niiha 
shedap  1 "  "  I  see  a  man !  "  went  with  a  dive  into  the 
d(>ei).  But  this  time  he  caught,  if  not  the  hair,  at 
least  the  hair-string,  of  the  fairest,  which  remained  in 
his  hand.  And,  gazing  on  this,  it  came  into  his  mind 
that  he  had  got  tliat  which  was  her  charm,  or  life, 
and  that  she  could  not  live  without  it,^  or  her  cher- 
ished sul'uUohcc  (M.).  And  taking  it  home,  he  tied 
it  to  the  place  in  the  wigwam  above  that  wherein  he 
slept.  Nor  had  he  waited  long  before  she  came,  and, 
with  little  ado,  remained  witii  him  as  his  wife. 

Now  Pulowech,  being  himself  addicted  to  sorcery, 
knew  that  there  were  divers  knaves  of  the  same  stamp 
prowling  about  the  woods,  who  would  make  short  work 
of  a  wife  if  they  could  find  a  phunp  young  one  in 
the  way,  —  they  being  robbers,  ravishers,  and  canni- 
bals withal.  Therefore  he  warned  his  bride  to  keep 
well  within  doors  when  he  was  away,  and  to  open  to 

^  The  magio  Iiair-striiig;  plays  a  part  in  many  of  those  tales. 
It  belongs  to  the  sorcery  of  all  the  world  in  all  ages. 


THE  PAIlTUIDGi:.  283 

none,  which  sho,  poor  sonl,  mount  to  ohcy  with  all  her 
nii^ht.  Jiiit  being-  alonu  at  mi(lui|^ht,  and  licariii<j;- a 
call  outaiilo,  even  ''^PantaJulooe!  "  M.,  "Open  the  door 
to  me  I  "  she  wondered  greatly  who  it  might  be.  And 
it  was  a  very  wicked  wizartl,  a  hoo-oin,  or  pow-wow  ; 
and  he,  being  snbtle  and  crafty,  and  knowing  of  her 
family,  ho  imitated  the  voices  of  her  brothers  and 
sisters,  beseeching  her  to  let  them  in,  that  her  very 
heart  ached.  "  O  sister,  we  have  come  from  afar !  " 
they  cried.  "  We  missed  you,  and  have  followed  you. 
Let  us  in  !  "  And  yet  again  she  hi.ard  a  sad  and  very 
earnest  voice,  and  it  was  that  of  her  old  mother,  cry- 
ing, "lY'^oos',  ntoos\ i^antahdooe ! ""  ]\I.,  "My  daugh- 
ter !  my  daughter !  open  unto  nic  !  "  and  sho  verily 
wist  that  it  must  be  so.  But  when  she  heard  the 
voice  of  her  dear  old  father,  shaking  and  saying, 
'''■  Pantahdooe  lokc  cyoiot'liee ! '^  "Open  the  door,  for  I 
.am  very  cold  !  "  she  could  resist  no  more,  and,  spring- 
ing up,  opened  it  to  those  who  were  without.  And 
then  the  evil  sorcerers,  springing  on  her  like  mad 
wolves,  dragged  her  away  and  devoured  her.  They 
did  not  leave  two  of  her  little  bones  one  with  an- 
other.^ 

Now  when  W('jel\  the  Tree  Partridge,  came  in  and 
found  his  friend's  wife  gone,  he  was  so  angry  tliat, 
without  waiting,  he   set  forth  to  seek  her.     And  this 

^  This  Iiulliin  Little  Red  llidiiig-llood  story  is  very  effectivo. 
Tlio  wolfish  sorcorers  Ijitrstiiitr  in  <'it  niidnijrht  are  even  more  tor- 
rible,  from  a  uursery  nielodraniatic  point,  than  the  old  wolf  in 
bed. 


284  THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

was  not  wisely  done,  since,  falling  among  them,  he 
was  himself  slain.  Then  Pnloweeh,  returning  last  of 
all,  and  iinding  no  one,  sought  by  means  of  magi(;  to 
know  whore  friend  and  wife  might  be.  For  taking  a 
woltes^  or  a  wooden  dish,  ho  filled  it  with  water,  and 
charmed  it  with  a  spell,  and  placed  it  in  the  back 
part  of  his  wigwam,  just  opposite  the  door.  So  he 
laid  him  down  to  sleep,  and  in  the  morning  when  he 
arose  he  looked  upon  the  dish,  —  even  the  dish  of 
divination,  —  and  lo  I  it  was  half  full  of  blood.  Then 
he  know  that  the  twain  had  been  murdered. 

Then  gathering  all  his  arms,  he  went  forth  for 
revenge,  and  passed  many  days  on  the  path,  tracking 
the  hoo-oui ;  and  having  the  eyesight  of  sorcery, 
he  one  day  beheld  very  far  away,  upon  an  exceeding 
high  cliff,  th(;  knee  of  a  man  sticking  out  of  the  stone, 
and  knew  that  a  sorcerer  had  hidden  himself  in  the 
solid  rock,  even  as  a  child  might  hide  itself  in  a  pile 
of  feathers.  Then  throwing  his  tomahawk  he  cut 
away  the  knee,  and  the  hoo-o'm^  his  spell  broken, 
remained  hard  and  fast  forever  in  the  ledge.  And 
yet,  anon,  a  little  further  on,  he  saw  a  foot  projecting 
from  a  wall,  and  this  he  likewise  cut  off,  and  with  that 
he  had  slain  two. 

And  as  he  went  further  he  found  by  the  way  a  j)oor 
little  s(piirrel,  even  JfccIiO,  who  was  crawling  along, 
half  dead,  in  sorry  i)light.  And  taking  her  up  he 
made  her  well,  and  placing  her  in  his  bosom,  said, 
*'  Rest  there  yet  a  while,  Jlccko,  for  thou  must  fight 
to-day,  and  that  fiercely.      Yet  fear  not,  for  I   will 


THE  PA nr RIDGE.  285 

stand  by  thco,  and  wlion  I  tap  tliy  back,  tlicn  shalt 
thou  bring  forth  thy  young!  " 

Then  going  ever  on,  ho  saw  from  the  mountains 
far  in  a  lako  below  a  flock  of  wild  geese  sporting 
merrily,  even  the  Senum-kival'.  But  he  wist  right 
well  that  these  also  were  of  the  hoo-oln.,  whom  ho 
sought,  and  placing  a  spell  on  his  bow,  and  singing  a 
charm  over  his  arrows  that  they  should  not  miss,  ho 
slew  the  wild  fowl  one  by  one,  and  tying  their  heads 
together,  he  carried  them  in  a  bunch  upon  his  back. 
And  truly  he  deemed  it  a  good  bag  of  game  for  one 
day. 

And  yet  further  on  he  came  to  a  wigwam,  and 
entering  it  saw  a  man  there  seated,  whom  he  knew  at 
once  was  of  the  enemy.  For  he  who  sat  there  glared 
at  him  grimly  ;  he  did  not  say  to  him,  " ' Kut<il'iimon(j- 
UHil  .^  "  "  Come  higher  up !  "  as  they  do  who  are  hospi- 
table. But  having  cooked  some  meat,  and  given  it  in 
a  dish  to  Pulowech's  hand,  he  snatclied  it  back  again, 
and  said  he  would  sooner  give  it  to  his  dog.  And  this 
he  did  more  than  once,  saying  the  same  thing.  But 
Pulowech  kept  quiet.  Then  the  rude  ni'in  said, ''  Hast 
thou  met  with  aught  to-day,  thou  knave?"  And  tho 
guest  replied,  "  Truly  I  saw  a  fellow's  knee  sticking 
out  of  a  stone,  and  I  cut  it  off.  And  yet,  anon,  I  saw 
a  foot  coming  from  a  rock,  and  this  I  also  chop})ed. 
And  further  on  there  was  a  flock  of  wild  geese,  and 
them  I  slew  ;  there  was  not  one  left,  —  no,  not  one. 
And  if  you  will  look  without  there  you  may  see  them 
all  dead,  and  much  good  may  it  do  you  !  " 


28G      THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

Then  the  savnjj^c  sorcerer  burst  forili  in  all  his  rajrc : 
"  Come  on,  then,  our  {l<)<;s  nuist  iiglit  this  out  I " 
"  Thou  sayest  well,"  rei)lio(l  Pulovvech ;  "  truly  I  am 
fond  of  a  good  dog-fight,  so  bring  out  thy  puj) !  " 
And  that  which  the  man  brought  forth  was  terrible ; 
for  it  was  no  dog,  but  a  hideous  savage  beast,  known 
to  Miemaes  as  the  Wel^uin} 

But  that  which  Pulowech  produced  was  quite  as 
different  from  a  dog  as  was  the  ]Vcisinn\  for  it  was 
only  3f('('h)^  a  poor  little  scpiirrel,  and  half  dead  at 
that,  which  he  laid  caiefully  Ijcfore  the  fire  that  it 
might  revive.^  But  anon  it  l)egan  to  i-evive,  and 
grew  until  it  was  woU-nigli  as  great  as  the  We'isum. 
And  then  there  was  indeed  a  battle  as  of  devils  and 
witches ;  he  who  had  been  a  hundred  nules  away 
might  have  heard  it. 

]5ut  anon  it  seemed  that  the  Weisum  was  getting 
the  better  of  Mxuho.  Then  Pulovvech  did  but  taj)  the 
squirrel  on  the  back,  when  lo  !  she  brought  forth  two 
other  squirrels,  and  these  grew  in  an  instant  to  be  as 
large  as  their  mother,  and  the  three  were  soon  too 
many  for  the  beast.  "  Ho !  call  oft"  your  dogs !  " 
cried  the  hoo-dln ;  "  you  have  beaten.  But  spare  mine, 
since,  indeed,  he  does  not  belong  to  me,  but  to  my 
grandmother,  who  is  very  fond  of  him."  ^     But  this 

^  The  Anuirok  of  the  Kskimo. 

^  In  another  version  of  this  story,  the  savac^e  stranj^er  puts 
lip  a  real  doj;-  a<:^ainst  th(!  scpiirrel  ;  and  in  the  story  of  Glooskaj), 
it  is  that  great  man  who  makes  tlie  squirrel  great  or  small. 

'■^  Tills    trivial    episode  of   begging  a  call-off  seems   to  have 


THE  PARTllIDdE.  287 

Pulowccli,  who  held  to  his  own  in  all  things  liko 
a  wolverine,  was  the  last  man  alive  to  think  of,  and 
ho  encouraged  the  s(juirrels  until  they  had  torn  the 
Wdsum  to  rags. 

Then  he  who  had  staked  It,  bitterly  lamented,  say- 
ing, "  Alack,  my  poor  grandmother !  Alas,  how  she 
will  wail  when  she  hears  that  her  Wehitni  is  dead! 
Woe  the  day  that  ever  I  did  put  him  up !  Alas,  my 
grandmother  I  "  For  all  which  the  cruel  Pulowech, 
the  hard-hearted,  impenitent  Partridge,  did  not  care 
the  hair  of  a  dead  nmsk-rat. 

Now  the  host,  wlio  had  thus  suddenly  grown  so 
tender-hearted,  said,  "  Let  us  sail  forth  upon  the  river 
in  a  canoe."  Tlien  they  were  soon  on  the  stream,  and 
rushing  down  a  rapid  like  a  dart.  And  anon  they 
came  to  a  terribly  high  cllfp,  in  which  there  was  a 
narrow  cavern  into  which  the  river  ran.  And  on  it, 
thundering  through  tliis  door  of  death,  borne  on  a 
boiling  surge,  the  bark  was  forced  furiously  into 
darkness.  And  Pulowech  sat  firmly  in  his  seat,  and 
steered  the  boat  with  steady,  certain  hand  :  but  just  as 
he  entered  the  horrible  hole,  glancing  around,  he  saw 
the  sorcerer  leap  ashore.  For  the  evil  man,  believing 
that  no  one  had  ever  come  alive  out  of  the  cavern,  had 
betrayed  him  into  it. 

Yet  ever  cool  and  calm  tlio  miglity  man  went  on, 
for  danger  now  was  l)ringing  out  all  tlie  force  of  his 

deeply  impressed  the  Indians,  who  ai'(>  inrenerully  si)()rtiiig-inen, 
since  I  find  it  iii  both  the  i'assauuiquudily  and  ^lieuiac  verfiiuas 
of  the  legend. 


288  THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

magic  ;  *  and  soon  the  stream  grew  smoother,  the  rocks 
disappeared  from  its  bed,  and  then  from  afar  there 
was  a  brightness,  and  he  was  soon  in  the  daylight 
and  sunshine  on  a  beautiful  stream,  and  by  the  banks 
thereof  there  grew  the  icdhci/ii-bi'skwdn^  or  water- 
lilies,  and  very  pluasant  it  was  to  him  to  feel  the  wind 
again.  So  using  his  paddle  he  saw  a  smoke  rising 
from  a  cavo  in  the  rocks,  and  landing  and  softly 
stepi)ing  up  heard  talking  within. 

Nor  had  ho  listened  long  ere  he  knew  the  voice  of 
the  man  who  had  lured  him  into  the  canoe,  and  he 
was  telling  liis  grandmother  how,  one  after  the  other, 
all  the  best  hoo-oin  of  their  band  had  been  slain  by 
a  mighty  sorcerer.  But  when  she  heard  from  him 
how  her  beloved,  or  the  one  who  had  inspired  the 
TFcis?/m,  had  been  beaten,  her  wrath  burst  forth  in  a 
storm,  like  the  raving  of  devils,  like  a  mad  wind  on 
the  waves.  And  she  said,  "  If  Pulowech  were  but  be- 
fore me,  were  ho  but  alive,  I  would  roast  him."  Tlio 
man,  hearing  this,  cried,  "  Aye  ;  but  he  is  not  alive, 
for  I  sent  him  afloat  down  into  tlio  dark  cavern  ! " 

And  then  Pulowech,  stei)])ing  in  before  them,  said, 
"  And  yet  I  am  alive.  And  do  thou,  woman,  hak  sole 
hole  sooc  !  "  (roast  me  to  death).  Then  she  scowled 
horribly  at  him,  but  said  naught ;  and  he,  sitting 
down,  looked  at  them. 

^  It  is  very  oliiiracti'ristic  of  llic  heroes  of  those  Indian  talos 
that  thoy  gradually  unfold  or  develop  from  small  characteristics 
to  very  great  ones.  There  is  a  lesson  in  this,  and  it  has  becu 
perfectly  appreciated  by  poets  and  similar  sorcerers. 


THE  PARTllIDGE.  289 

This  woman  was  of  the  Porcupines,  who  arc  never 
long  without  raisiug  their  (iuills,  ami  they  are  fond  of 
heat.  Now  there  was  in  the  cave  much  heinhxik  bark, 
and  this  she  began  to  heap  on  the  fire.  Then  it  bhized, 
it  crackled  and  roared  ;  but  Puloweeh  sat  still,  and 
said  naught,  neitiier  did  his  eyes  change.  And  ho 
called  unto  hiuiseU"  all  his  might,  the  might  of  his 
magic  did  he  awaken,  and  the  spirit  came  unto  him 
very  terribly,  so  that  all  the  hoo-o'ui^  with  tlieir  vilo 
black  witchcraft,  were  but  as  worms  before  him,  the 
Great  and  Terrible  One.  And  when  the  fire  had 
burned  low  he  brought  in  by  his  will  great  store  of 
bark,  so  that  the  whole  cave  was  filled,  and  closing  the 
door  he  lighted  the  fuel.  Then  the  Porcupines,  wlio 
were  those  who  had  slain  his  wife  and  friend,  howled 
for  mercy,  but  lie  was  deaf  as  a  stone  to  their  cries. 
Then  the  roof  and  sides  of  the  cavern  cracked  with  the 
heat,  the  red-hot  stones  fell  in  heavy  blocks,  the  red 
flames  rose  in  the  thickest  smoke,  but  Puloweeh  sat 
and  sanji  his  song  until  the  witch  and  wizard  were 
burned  to  cinders  ;  yea,  till  their  white  bones  crumbled 
to  ashes  beneath  his  feet.  -tVnd  then  he  arose  and 
went  unto  his  liome.^ 

^  In  this  Micmac  Icfjend,  whicli  is  plainly  a  poem,  there  is  one 
very  strikinj^  and  orij^inal  element  in  the  art  with  which  tho 
gi-eat  knowledjfe  and  power  of  I'ulowech  are  kept  out  of  sight 
iintil  towards  the  final  unfoldin*,''.  When  he  picks  up  the  Squirrel 
it  is  with  a  fidl  eoniprehension  that  ho  will  be  confronted  with 
the  Weisam.  From  the  beginning  to  tiie  end,  he  is  master  of  the 
situation ;  all  goes  on  with  him  like  tho  unfolding  of  Fate  in  a 
19 


290  THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

Ill  this  le^oiul  the  hero  passes  the  mysterious  river 
which  separates  iu  several  liulian  tales  the  ordinary 
world  froin  that  where  the  evil  giants,  .liituns,  sor- 
cerers, or  witches  live.  It  appears  to  correspond  ex- 
actly to  "  the  stream  called  lliiig,  which  divides  the 
earth  hctweon  the  Jotuns  and  the  (iods."  (Edda, 
Vafthrudiiismal,  1(3.)  The  attempt  by  the  Porcupine 
host  to  roast  the  guest  alive  and  its  failure  bears  a 
marked  likeness  to  the  scene  in  the  Grimnismul,  in 
whicli  King  Gcirrod  vainly  strives  to  roast  his  guest, 
Odin,  and  is  himself  slain. 

"  Fire,  thou  art  hot, 
juul  mucli  too  great ; 
llaiiic,  let  us  separate." 

The  grandeur  of  Odin  and  the  behavior  of  the  In- 
dian arc  set  forth  in  a  strikingly  similar  manner  in 
both  narratives.  If  any  modern  poet  had  depicted 
this  incident  in  so  like  a  style,  every  critic  would 
have  cried  out  plagiarism ! 

The  Story  of  a  Fartr'idye  and  his  Womlorfal  JViyivam. 

Once  a  man  was  traveling  through  the  woods,  and 
he  heard  afar  oft'  a  sound  as  of  footstei)s  beating  the 
ground.  So  he  sought  to  find  the  peoi)le  that  made 
it,  and  went  on  for  a  full  week  ere  he  came  to  them. 
And  it  was  a  man  and  his  wife  dancing  about  a  tree, 
in  the  top  of  which  was  a  Kaccoon.    They  had,  by  their 

Greek  tragedy,  until  the  end,  when,  stern  aud  uiipitying,  he  sits 
in  the  cavern  of  fire  and  sees  his  enemies  roasted  alive  hetore 
him.  —  From  the  Rand  Manuscript. 


77//;  I'AIlTlilDGR.  291 

constant  trcadlnp^,  worn  a  trench  in  tlio  pronntl ;  in- 
deed, tliey  were  in  it  up  to  their  waists.'  Then,  being 
asked  why  thciy  tlid  this  strange  thing,  they  answered 
that,  being  luingry,  they  were  trying  to  dance  down 
the  tree  to  catch  the  liaccoon. 

Then  the  man  who  had  eonio  said,  "  Tndy  there  is 
a  newer  and  better  way  of  feUing  trees,  which  has 
hitely  come  into  tlie  hind."  As  they  wished  to  know 
what  this  miglit  be,  he  showed  them  how  to  cut  it 
down,  and  did  so ;  making  it  a  condition  that  if  tliey 
got  the  game  they  might  liave  the  meat  and  he  shoukl 
get  the  skin.  So  when  tlie  tree  fell  they  cauglit  the 
animal,  and  the  woman,  having  tanned  the  skin,  gave 
it  to  the  man,  and  he  went  his  way. 

And  being  afar,  in  a  path  in  tlio  forest,  ho  met  an- 
other man,  and  was  greatly  amazed  at  him  because  ho 
was  bearing  on  his  head  a  house,  or  a  large  birch  wig- 
wam of  many  rooms.  He  was  frightened  at  first  at 
such  a  sight,  but  the  man,  putting  down  his  house, 
shook  hands  with  him,  and  seemed  to  be  a  right  hon- 
est good  feUow.  Then  while  they  smoked  and  talked, 
the  Man  of  the  House,  seeing  the  skin  of  Ilcsjm.is, 
or  that  of  the  llaccoon,  in  the  other's  belt,  said, 
"Well,  that  is  a  fine  pelt!  Where  did  you  get  it, 
brother  ?  "  And  he,  answering,  told  all  the  story  of 
the  Dancing  Man  and  Wife  ;    whereupon  he  of   the 

^  To  dance  away  the  ground,  or  walk  knee-deep  in  it,  was 
characteristic  of  wizards.  So  was  the  hearing  of  any  sound  at 
an  apparently  incredihle  distance.  To  an  Indian  mind  this  tulo 
is  weu'd  and  wondtjrful  from  the  first  words  thereof. 


202  TIIK  ALGONQJIIN  LEGENDS. 

IIoiiso  Locarno  ini*;litily  anxious  to  Iniy  it,  offering 
one  tliinj^  after  anotlier  for  it,  and  at  last  the  House, 
which  was  aceepted.  And,  examining  it,  the  buyer 
was  ania/.ed  to  find  liow  nuiny  rooms  it  oontaincd, 
and  how  full  it  was  of  good  furniture.  "Truly," 
said  he,  "  I  eau  never  carry  tiiis  as  you  do  I  "  "  Vos, 
you  can,"  replied  the  Pl/-we(i-w(ni-t<oo-in  (P.,  one  who 
belongs  somewhere  else,  —  a  stranger).  "  Do  but  try 
it !  "  So  he  essayed  and  lifted  it  easily,  for  ho  found 
it  as  light  as  any  bi/ssino(ie  or  basket. 

So  tlioy  ])arted  and  he  went  on  carrying  his  cabin 
till  night-fall,  wlien  coming  to  a  hard-wood  ridge,  near 
a  good  spring  of  water,  he  resolved  to  settle  there.* 
And,  searching,  he  found  a  room  in  which  there  was  a 
very  fine  l)ed,  covered  with  a  ic/iite  hear-»lln?  And 
as  it  was  very  soft,  and  he  was  very  weary,  he  slept 
well. 

In  the  morning,  when  he  awoke,  what  was  his  aston- 
ishment and  delight  to  see  above  him,  hanging  to  the 
beams,  all  kinds  of  nice  provisions,  —  venison,  hams, 
ducks,  baskets  of  berries  and  of  maple-sugar,  with 
many  oars  of  Indian  corn.  And  as  he,  in  his  joy, 
stretched  out  his  arms  and  made  a  jump  towards  all 
these  dainties,  behold  the  white  bear-skin  melted  and 
ran  away,  for  it  was  the  snow  of  winter  ;  and  his  arms 

*  A  liard-wood  ridgo  ;  that  is,  whore  tliore  is  plenty  of  birch, 
ash,  and  such  trees  as  are  necessary  fi)r  baskets,  dishes,  canoes, 
and  other  Indian  wants.  Ilenuc  it  is  mentioned  in  many  tales  as 
a  desirable  place  to  live. 

^  A  sure  indication  of  sorcery. 


THE  PMiriUDGK.  293 

spi'cad  forth  into  wings,  and  lio  Hew  up  to  tlio  food, 
which  was  tho  early  buds  of  the  hiri-h,  on  which  they 
hung.'  And  ho  was  a  I'artiidge,  who  after  the  man- 
ner of  his  kind  liad  been  winterinyj  under  a  snow- 
drift, and  now  eanie  forth  to  greet  Iho  pleasant  spring. 

How  the  Partridye  built  Good  C<niocs  for  all  the  liirds^ 
and  a  Had  One  for  Il'tni^rlf 

When  a  i)artridge  beats  upon  a  hoUow  log  he 
makes  a  noise  like  an  Indian  at  work  iipou  a  canoe, 
and  when  an  Indian  taps  at  a  canoe  it  sounds  afar 
otf  like  the  drununuig  of  a  partridge,  even  of  JlUchl- 
/ir.s.s'.  And  this  comes  because  that  N'kaniftyoo,  of 
ancient  days,  the  Partridge,  was  the  canoe-builder  for 
all  the  other  birds.     Yes,  for  all  at  once. 

And  on  a  certain  day  they  every  one  assendded,  and 
each  got  into  his  bark,  and  truly  it  was  a  brave  sight 
to  see.  First  of  all  Ku'hccfhKjou^  the  Eagle,  entered 
his  great  shell  and  paddled  off,  using  the  ends  of  his 
wings  ;  and  then  came  Ko-ho-l'di^^  the  Owl,  doii.  tho 
same  *;  and  KosqiC^  tlie  Ch-ane,  Wce-now-^ivce-hcsxiH^ 
the  Bluebird,  Tji(/(/('-is-,sl-tr('sn,  the  Snipe,  and  J/c(j- 
su'cit-tchip-stH,  the  Blackbird,  all  came  sailing  j)roudly 
after.  Even  the  tiny  A-la-JIussit,  the  Ihunming-Bird, 
had  a  dear  little  boat,  and  for  him  the  good  Par- 
tridge had  made  a  pretty  little  paddle,  only  that  some 

^  Bireli  buds  are  tho  food  of  the  ]>artii(lp^o.  Tho  unoxpoctod 
cndhig  of  this  taU;  sigiiilics  tho  siidck'ii  lotnni  of  spriuij.  As 
tokl  by  an  Indian,  it  is  very  cITcctivo.  Tliis  talc  was  told  nie  by 
Tomah  Joseplis. 


204  Till:  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

thought  it  rather  largo,  for  it  was  ahnost  an  inch  long. 
And  Ish/n('</ir('.'<K,  tlio  Fish-llawk,  wlio  lived  on  the 
wing,  cried  in  amazement,  "vl^'wrr/r/i  .sZc»?/yVi/"  "A 
canoe  is  eoming ! ''  when  he  beheld  this  beautiful 
squadron  standing  out  to  sea. 

Jhit  when  Mltchihcss^  the  great  builder,  was  asked 
why  he  had  not  built  a  eanoe  for  himself,  he  merely 
looked  mysterious  and  drunnned.  And  being  further 
questioned  by  the  birds,  he  shook  his  head,  and  at  last 
hinted  that  when  he  built  a  eanoe  uutt)  himself  it 
would  be  indeed  a  marvel ;  yea,  a  wonder  such  as  even 
birds'  eyes  had  never  beheld,  —  an  entire  novelty,  and 
something  to  dream  of.  And  this  went  on  for  many 
days. 

But  in  due  time  it  was  noised  abroad  that  the 
wonderful  eanoe  had  at  last  been  really  built,  and 
would  soon  1)0  shown.  And  at  an  a])pointed  time  all 
the  birds  assembled  on  the  banks  to  beliold  this  now 
thinsf.  Now  the  Partrid<20  had  reasoned  that  if  a 
boat  having  two  ends  could  bo  rowed  in  two  ways,  one 
which  was  all  ends,  all  round,  could  be  rowed  in  every 
way.  So  he  liad  made  a  eanoe  which  was  exactly  like 
a  nest,  or  perfectly  round.  And  this  idea  had  greatly 
amazed  the  honest  feathered  folk,  who  were  astonished 
that  so  simple  a  thing  had  n(jt  occurred  to  all  of  them. 

But  what  was  their  wondcn*  when  Partridge,  having 
entered  his  canoe  and  i)roceeded  to  i)addlo,  made  no 
headway  at  all ;  for  it  situjdy  turned  round  and  round, 
and  ever  and  again  the  same  way,  let  him  work  it  as 
he   would.     And  after  wearying  himself   and  all  in 


THE  PARTRIDaE.  295 

vain,  ho  wont  ashore,  and,  flyinj^  far  inland,  liid  him- 
self for  very  shanu;  und(!r  the  low  bushes,  on  tho 
oartli,  where  he  yet  remains.  This  is  the  reason  wliy 
he  never  seeks  the  sea  or  rivers,  and  has  ever  sinco 
remained  an  inland  l)ird.^ 

The  Mournful  Mi/steri/  of  the  rdrtrbhje-  Witch ;  setting 
forth  hoio  a  Younfj  3fan  died  from  Love. 

Of  the  olden  time.  Two  lirothers  went  hunting  in 
the  autumn,  and  that  as  fai*  as  tlie  lu;ad  waters  of  the 
Penobseot,  where  they  remained  all  winter.  liut  in 
Mareh  their  snow-shoes  (^<i(/(ihmo(>k\  1*.)  gave  out,  as 
did  their  moccasins,  and  they  wished  that  a  woman 
were  there  to  mend  them. 

When  tlu!  younger  brother  returned  first  to  the 
lodge,  the  next  day,  —  which  he  giaierally  did,  to  get  it 
ready  for  the  elder,  —  he  v/as  astonished  to  lind  that 
some  one  had  been  there  before  him,  and  tliat,  too,  in 
the  housekeeping.  For  garments  had  been  mended, 
the  place  cleaned  and  swe])t,  a  fire  built,  and  the  pot 
was  boiling.     lie  said  nothing  of  this  to  his  brother ; 

^  Having  met  Mr.  Louis  iMitoliell,  the  Indian  member  of  tho 
logishitiire  in  Maine,  one  day  in  Kastport,  I  asked  him  to  occupy 
tlie  few  minutes  which  wouhl  pabs  heforo  I  should  talte  the 
steamhoat  for  Calais  by  telling  me  a  story.  He  complied  by 
narrating  tho  foregoing.  It  is  very  remarkable  that  the  Indian 
storj'-tcllers  of  ancient  days  s]u)ul(l  have  taken  it  into  their 
heads  to  satirize  an  idea  which  has  been  of  late  carried  out 
completely  by  the  Russian  Admiral  Popoff,  in  his  celebrated 
circular  war  steamer.  The  story  and  all  the  Indian  words  in  it 
are  Passamaquoddy. 


29G  THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

but  roturning  tho  next  day  at  the  same  timo,  found 
that  all  had  been  {ittcnded  to,  as  at  first.  And  again 
he  said  nothing  ;  but  in  the  inoniiuf^,  when  he  went 
forth  to  hunt,  he  did  but  go  a  little  way,  and,  return- 
ing, watehed,  from  a  hidden  place,  the  door.  AjuI 
there  eauie  a  beautiful  and  graceful  girl,  well  attired, 
who  entered  the  wigwam.  And  he,  stepping  softly, 
looking  through  a  hole  in  the  hut,  saw  her  very  busy 
with  his  housekeeping. 

Then  he  entered,  and  she  seemed  to  bo  greatly 
alarmed  and  confused  ;  but  he  calmed  hei",  and  they 
soon  became  good  friends,  sporting  together  very  hap 
pily  all  day  long  like  children,  for  indeed  they  were 
both  young. 

When  the  sun's  hciiiht  was  little  and  his  shadows 
long,  the  girl  said,  "  I  must  go  now.  I  hear  your 
brother  coming,  and  I  fear  him.  But  I  will  return 
to-morrow.  Addio  /  "  So  she  went,  and  the  elder 
brother  knew  nothing  of  what  had  hap})ened.  The 
next  day  she  came  again,  and  once  more  they  played 
in  sunshine  and  shadow  until  evening  ;  but  ere  she 
went  he  sought  to  persuade  her  to  remain  always. 
And  she,  as  if  in  doubt,  answered,  "  Tell  thy  brother 
all,  and  it  may  be  that  I  will  stay  and  serve  ye  both. 
For  I  can  make  the  snow-shoes  and  moccasins  which 
ye  so  much  need,  and  also  canoes."  Then  she  de- 
parted with  the  day,  and  the  elder,  returning,  heard 
from  his  brother  all  that  had  happened,  and  said, 
"Truly  I  should  be  glad  to  have  some  one  here  to 
take  care  of  the  wigwam  and  make  suow^-shoes." 


THE  rAllT RIDGE.  297 

So  she  camo  in  tlio  morning,  and  licaring  from  the 
younger  that  his  brother  had  consented  to  her  coming 
was  very  ghid,  and  went  away,  as  in  haste.  But  slie 
returned  about  noon,  drawing  a  tohog(/i/i  (sled)  })ik'd 
up  with  garments  and  arms,  for  she  was  a  huntress. 
Indeed,  slie  could  do  all  things  as  few  women  could, 
whetlier  it  were  cooking,  needle-worlc,  or  making  all 
that  men  need.  And  the  winter  passed  very  pleas- 
antly, until  tlie  snow  grew  soft,  and  it  was  time  for 
them  to  return.  Till  she  came  they  had  little  luck 
in  hunting,  but  since  her  coming  all  liad  gone  well 
witli  them,  and  they  now  had  a  wonderful  cpiantity  of 
furs. 

Then  they  returned  in  a  canoe,  going  down  the  river 
to  their  village.  But  as  they  came  near  it  the  girl 
grew  sad,  for  she  had  thrown  out  her  soul  to  their 
home,  though  they  knew  it  not,  by  mcdalihl-givc} 
And  suddenly  she  said,  as  they  came  to  a  point  of 
land,  "  Here  I  must  leave.  I  can  go  no  furtluu*.  Say 
nothing  of  me  to  your  ]>arents,  for  your  father  would 
have  but  little  love  for  me."  And  the  young  men 
sought  to  persuade  her,  but  she  only  answered  sorrow- 
fully, "  It  cannot  be."  So  tlu^y  came  home  with  their 
furs,  and  the  elder  was  so  proud  of  their  luck  and 
their  strange  adventure  that  he  could  not  hold  his 
peace,  but  told  all. 

Then  his  father  was  very  angiy,  and  said,  "  2V 11  my 
life  have  I  feared  this.  Know  that  this  woman  was  a 
devil  of  the  woods,  a  witch  of  the  Mitche-hant,  a  sister 
1  Pussamaquoddy  :  Clairvoyance,  or  state  of  visum. 


298  THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

of  the  Oo?iaJif/((mess  ^  and  of  tlie  A'cHahls.^*  And  ho 
spoke  so  earnestly  and  so  loni^  of  this  thing  that  tliey 
were  afraid,  and  the  elder,  being  persuaded  by  the 
sire,  went  forth  to  slay  lu.'r,  and  the  younger  followed 
him  afar.  So  they  sought  her  by  the  stream,  and 
found  her  bathing,  and,  seeing  them,  she  ran  up  a  lit- 
tle hill.  And,  as  she  ran,  the  elder  shot  an  arrow  at 
her.  Then  there  was  a  strange  flurry  about  her,  a 
fluttering  of  seattered  feathers,  and  they  saw  her  fly 
away  as  a  partridge,  lieturning,  they  told  all  this  to 
their  father,  who  said,  "  You  did  well.  I  know  all 
about  these  female  devils  who  seek  to  destroy  men. 
Verily  this  was  a  she  Mikumwess."  '^ 

But  the  younger  could  not  forget  her,  and  longed  to 
see  her  again  ;  so  one  day  he  went  into  the  woods,  and 
there  he  indeed  foiuid  her,  and  she  was  as  kind  as  be- 
fore. Then  he  said,  "  Truly  it  was  not  by  my  good- 
will that  my  brother  shot  at  you."  And  she  an- 
swered, "  Well  do  I  know  that,  and  that  it  was  all  by 
your  father  ;  yet  I  blame  him  not,  for  this  is  an  affair 
of  JV'karnayoo,  the  days  of  old ;  and  even  yet  it  Is  not 
at  an  end,  and  the  greatest  is  to  come.  But  let  the  day 
be  only  a  day  unto  itself ;  the  things  of  to-morrow  are 
for  to-morrow,  and  those  of  yesterday  are  departed." 
So  they  forgot  their  troubles,  and  played  together  mer- 
rily all  day  long  in  the  woods  and  in  the  open  places, 
and  told  stories  of  old  times  till  sunset.     And  as  the 

*  P.     Cobllus  and  ghosts. 

^  P.     The    Mikiiiuwpss  is   a   Rohm   GoodfeUow,   who  plays 
prauks  on  people,  or  treats  them  kiiidlj,  according  to  his  caprice. 


THE  PARTRIDGE.  290 

JTah-kah-r/ooH,  or  Crow,  went  to  his  trco,  the  boy  said, 
"  I  must  return  ;  "  juid  she  replied,  "  Whenever  you 
wouhl  see  me,  eome  to  the  woods.  And  remend)er 
what  I  say.  Do  not  marry  any  one  else.  For  your 
father  wishes  you  to  do  so,  and  he  will  s])eak  of  it  to 
you,  and  that  soon.  Yet  it  is  for  your  sake  only  that 
I  say  this."  Then  she  told  him  word  by  word  all  that 
his  father  had  said ;  but  he  was  not  astonished,  for 
now  he  knew  tluit  she  was  not  as  other  women  ;  but  he 
cared  not.  And  he  grew  l)ravc  and  bold,  and  then  he 
was  above  all  tiiiniis.  And  when  she  told  him  that  if 
he  should  marry  another  he  would  surely  die,  it  was 
as  nothiuii'  to  him. 

Tlicn  retuniing-,  the  first  tiling  his  father  said  was, 
"  My  son,  I  have  provided  a  wife  for  you,  and  the 
wedding  nuist  be  at  once."  And  he  said,  "  It  is  well. 
Let  it  l)e  so."  Then  the  bride  eame.  For  four  days 
they  held  the  wedding  dance ;  four  days  they  feasted. 
But  on  the  last  day  he  said,  "This  is  the  end  of  it 
all,"  and  he  Liid  him  down  on  a  white  bear-skin,  and  a 
great  sickness  came  upon  him,  and  when  they  brought 
the  bride  to  him  he  was  dead. 

Truly  the  father  knew  what  ailed  him,  and  more 
withal,  of  which  he  said  nothing.  Ihit  he  liked  the 
place  no  longer,  and  he  and  his  went  away  therefrom, 
and  scattered  far  and  wide. 

This  strange  story  recalls  the  Undine  of  La  Motte 
rouqu(3.  There  is  in  it  an  element  of  mystery  and 
destiny,   equal  in  every  way  to  anything  in  (ierr.ian 


800      THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

literature.  The  family  secret,  touelied  on  l)nt  never 
explained,  wliich  ends  in  such  a  death,  is,  sjieaking 
from  an  artistic  point  of  view,  very  skillfully  man- 
aged. It  must  be  borne  in  mind  that  in  this,  as  in 
most  of  these  tales,  there  are  associations  and  chords 
which  make  as  gold  to  an  Indian  that  which  is  only 
copper,  or  at  best  silver,  to  the  civilized  reader  of  my 
translations. 

There  is  a  characteristic  feature  of  this  story  supe- 
rior to  anything  in  Undine.  It  is  the  growth  in  the 
hero,  when  he  knows  tlie  worst  to  come,  of  that  will, 
or  stoicism,  or  complete  indifference  to  fate,  whicli  the 
Indians  regard  as  ecpiivalent  to  attaining  niteouHn^ 
or  magic  power.  AVhen  a  man  has  in  him  such  cour- 
age that  nothing  earthly  can  do  more  than  increase  it, 
he  has  attained  to  what  is  in  one  sense  at  least  Nir- 
vana. From  an  Algonquin  point  of  view  the  plot  is 
perfect. 

I  have  given  this  story  accurately  as  it  was  told  to 
me  by  Tomah  Josephs,  a  Passamaquoddy  Indian. 

Hoio  one  of  the  Partridge's  Wives  became  a  Sheldrake 
Duck,  and  why  her  Feet  and  Feathers  are  Red. 

N^karnayoo,  of  the  old  time,  there  was  a  hunter 
who  lived  in  the  woods.  lie  had  a  brother,^  who  was 
so  small  that  he  kept  him  in  a  box,  and  when  he  went 

1  Tlie  word  brother  is  so  generally  applied  in  adoption  or 
friendship  that  it  cannot  here  be  taken  in  a  literal  sense.  The 
brother  in  this  case  seems  to  have  been  a  gobliu  or  spirit. 


THE  PARTRIDGE.  301 

forth  he  closed  this  very  carefully,  for  fear  lest  au  evil 
spirit  (Mitclie-haiit)  should  f^et  liiui. 

One  day  this  luinter,  returnini;-,  saw  a  very  beautiful 
girl  sitting-  on  a  rock  by  a  river,  nudvinj;'  a  moccasin. 
And  being  in  a  canoe  he  paddled  up  softly  and  si- 
lently to  capture  her ;  but  she,  seeing  liini  coming, 
jumped  into  tlie  water  and  disai)i)eared.  On  return- 
ing to  her  mother,  who  lived  at  the  bottom  of  the 
river,  she  was  told  to  go  back  to  the  himter  and  1)0 
his  wife  ;  "  for  now,"  said  the  mother,  "  you  belong  to 
that  man." 

The  hunter's  name  was  INIitchihess,  the  Partridge. 
When  slie  came  to  his  lodge  he  was  absent.  So  she 
arranged  everytliing  for  his  return,  mtdving  a  bed  of 
boughs.  At  night  he  came  ])ack  with  one  beaver. 
This  he  divided  ;  cooked  one  lialf  for  supper  and  laid 
by  the  other  half.  In  tlie  morning  when  slie  awoke 
he  was  gone,  and  the  other  half  of  the  beaver  had  also 
disappeared.  That  niglit  he  returned  with  anotlier 
beaver,  and  the  same  thing  took  place  again.  Tlion 
she  resolved  to  spy  and  find  out  what  all  this  meant. 

So  she  laid  down  and  went  to  sleep,  wide  awake, 
with  one  eye  open.  Then  he  quietly  rose  and  cooked 
the  half  of  the  beaver,  and  taking  a  key  {Ajihrosr/e- 
hcffan,  P.)  unlocked  a  box,  and  took  out  a  little  red 
dwarf  and  fed  him.  lieidacing  the  elf,  he  locked  him 
np  again,  and  lay  down  to  sleep.  And  the  small 
creature  had  eaten  the  whole  half  beaver.  Put  ere  he 
l)ut  him  in  his  box  he  washed  him  and  combed  his 
hair,  which  seemed  to  delight  him. 


302  THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

The  next  iiioiniug,  when  her  hnsband  had  gone  for 
the  day,  the  wife  sought  for  the  key,  and  liaving  found 
it  opened  the  box  and  called  to  the  little  fellow  to 
come  out.  This  he  refused  to  do  for  a  long  time, 
tliough  she  promised  to  wasii  and  eomb  him.  Being 
at  length  persuaded,  he  i)eeped  out,  when  she  pulled 
him  forth.  But  whenever  she  touched  him  her  hands 
became  red,  thongh  of  this  she  took  no  heed,  thinking 
she  could  wash  it  off  at  will.  But  lo !  while  combing 
liim,  tliere  entered  a  hideous  being,  an  awful  devil, 
who  caught  the  small  elf  from  her  and  ran  away. 

Then  she  was  terribly  frightened.  And  trying  to 
wash  her  hands,  the  red  stain  remained.  When  her 
husband  returned  that  night  he  had  no  game ;  when 
he  saw  the  red  stain  he  knew  all  that  had  happened ; 
when  he  knew  what  had  ha])i)ened  he  seized  his  bow 
to  beat  her ;  when  she  saw  him  seize  his  bow  to  beat 
her  she  ran  down  to  the  river,  and  jumped  in  to 
cscajje  death  at  his  hands,  though  it  should  be  by 
drowning.  Ikit  as  she  fell  into  the  water  she  became 
a  sheldrake  duck.  And  to  this  day  the  marks  of  the 
red  stain  are  to  be  seen  on  her  feet  and  feathers.^ 

^  Related  to  me  by  Noel  Josephs,  a  Passamaquoddy.  Nohvith- 
standiu}^  its  resemblance  to  Blue  Beard,  it  is  probably  in  every 
detail  a  very  old  Indian  tradition.  It  bears  a  slight  resemblance 
to  several  far  western  legends,  which  refer  to  peculiarities  in 
the  duck.     It  is  partly  repeated  in  a  Lox  legend. 


THE  INVISIBLE  ONE. 

(Mi(!iuiic.) 

There  was  once  a  large  Indian  village  situated  on 
the  border  of  a  lake,  —  Nameskeck"  oodun  Kusj)ehika 
(M.).  At  the  end  of  the  i)laco  was  a  lodge,  in  which 
dwelt  a  being  who  was  always  invisible.^  lie  had  a 
sister  who  attended  to  his  wants,  and  it  was  known 
that  any  girl  who  could  see  him  might  many  him. 
Therefore  there  were  indeed  few  who  did  not  make 
the  trial,  but  it  was  long  ere  one  succeeded. 

And  it  i)assed  in  this  wise.  Towards  evening,  when 
the  Invisible  One  was  supposed  to  be  returning  home, 
his  sister  would  walk  with  any  girls  who  came  down 
to  the  shore  of  the  lake.  She  indeed  could  see  her 
brother,  since  to  her  he  was  always  visible,  and  ])e- 
holding  him  slu)  would  say  to  her  comjianions,  "  Do 
you  see  my  brother  ?  "  And  then  they  would  mostly 
answer,  "  Yes,"  though  some  said,  "  Nay,"  —  alt  tclo- 
Vfjich,  aa  alttelooejik.  And  then  the  sister  would  say, 
^''CogoowiC  wiskobooksich?''^  "Of  what  is  his  shoul- 
der-strap made?"   But  as  some  tell  the  tale,  she  would 

1  In  this  Miemac  talc,  which  is  manifestly  corrupted  in  many 
ways,  the  hero  is  said  to  be  "  a  youth  whose  teeomul  (or  tutohiry 
animal)  was  the  moose,"  whence  he  took  his  name.  In  the  Pas- 
saniaquoddy  version  nothing  is  said  about  a  moose.  A  detailed 
account  of  the  difficulty  attending  the  proper  analysis  of  this 
tradition  will  be  found  at  the  end  of  this  chapter. 


304  THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

inquire  other  tilings,  such  as,  "What  is  Km  mooso-run- 
ner's  haul  ?  "  or,  ''  With  what  does  he  draw  liis  sled?  " 
And  tiiey  wouhl  rej)!}',  "  A  strip  of  rawliide,"  or  "  A 
green  withe,"  or  something  of  the  kind.  And  then  she, 
knowing  they  liad  not  told  the  truth,  would  rei)]y 
quietly,  "  Very  well,  let  us  return  to  the  wigwam !  " 

And  when  they  entered  the  i)laee  she  would  bid 
them  not  to  take  a  certain  seat,  for  it  was  3iis.  And 
after  they  had  helped  to  (took  the  supper  they  would 
wait  with  great  curiosity  to  see  him  eat.  Truly  ho 
gave  proof  that  he  was  a  real  person,  for  as  ho  took 
oif  his  moccasins  they  became  visible,  and  liis  sister 
hung  them  u\) ;  but  beyond  this  they  beheld  notliing 
not  even  when  they  remained  all  night,  as  many  did. 

There  dwelt  in  the  village  an  old  num,  a  widower, 
with  three  daughters.  The  youngest  of  these  was 
very  small,  weak,  and  often  ill,  which  did  not  prevent 
her  sisters,  especially  the  eldest,  treating  her  with 
great  cruelty.  The  second  daughter  was  kinder,  and 
sometimes  took  the  part  of  the  poor  abused  little  girl, 
but  the  other  would  burn  her  hands  and  face  with  hot 
coals ;  yes,  her  whole  body  was  scarred  with  tlie  marks 
made  by  torture,  so  that  people  called  her  Oochif/e- 
askw  (the  rough-faced  girl).  And  when  her  father, 
coming  home,  asked  what  it  meant  that  the  child  was 
so  disfigured,  her  sister  would  promptly  say  that  it 
was  the  fault  of  the  girl  herself,  for  that,  having  been 
forbidden  to  go  near  the  fire,  she  had  disobeyed  and 
fallen  in. 

Now  it  came  to  pass  that  it  entered  the  heads  of 


THE  INVISIBLE  ONE.  305 

tlie  two  elder  sisters  of  this  jjoor  <^irl  that  they  woulil 
go  ami  try  their  fortune  at  seeiuLj  the  Invisible  One. 
So  they  ehul  themselves  in  their  linest  and  strove  to 
look  their  fairest ;  and  findiny^  Ids  sister  at  home  went 
with  her  to  take  the  wonted  walk  down  to  tiie  water. 
Then  when  He  eame,  being  asked  if  they  saw  him,  tliey 
said,  "  Certainly,"  and  also  replied  to  the  question  of 
the  shoulder-strap  or  sled  eord,  "  A  ])ieee  of  rawhide." 
In  saying  which,  they  lied,  like  the  rest,  for  they  had 
seen  nothing,  and  got  nothing  for  their  i)ains. 

When  their  father  returned  home  the  next  evening 
lie  brought  with  him  many  of  the  })retty  little  shells 
from  whieh  weiojH'sl'ool  (M.),  or  wam])um,  was  made,^ 
and  they  were  soon  engaged  TK/jxi/ctjlk  (in  stringing 
them). 

That  day  poor  little  Ooehigeaskw',  the  l)urnt-faeed 
girl,  who  had  always  run  barefoot,  got  a  pair  of  her 
father's  old  moceasins,  and  put  them  into  water  that 
they  might  beeome  flexible  to  wear.  And  Ix'gging 
her  sisters  for  a  few  wampum  shells,  the  eldest  did 
but  eall  her  "  a  lying  little  pest,"  but  the  other  gave 
her  a  few.  And  having  no  elotlu^s  beyond  a  few  i)al- 
try  rags,  the  poor  creature  went  forth  and  got  herself 
from  the  woods  a  few  sheets  of  bireh  bark,  of  whieh 
she  made  a  dress,  putting  some  figures  on  the  bark.^ 

^  In  Passamaquoddy  waiupiiin  is  called  icaw-bap.  It  is  said 
that  a  single  bead  required  a  full  day's  work  to  make  and  finish 
it.  It  is  not  many  yeai'S  since  it  was  made  nuu.li  more  expe- 
ditiously in  certain  New  York  villaoes. 

^  Piobably  by  scraping.  Birch  burk  Qnoshve)  peeled  in  win- 
20 


.%0  THE  ALGONQUIN  LEG  ENDS. 

An<l  tluH  «liosH  slu'  sliajx'il  liUo  thoso  worn  of  old.'  So 
hIh'  iujkK'  u  pctticoHt  uiid  si  Iooho  gown,  a  cjip,  lo«5- 
gius,  and  handlcoicliu'l,  and,  iiaving'  put  on  her  fa- 
ther's {^reat  old  moeeasins,  —  which  came  nearly  up 
to  her  knees,  —  she  wt-nt  forth  to  try  her  luck.  For 
even  this  little  tiling  would  see  the  Invisible  One  m 
the  great  wigwam  at  the  end  of  the  village. 

Truly  her  luck  had  a  most  inauspicious  beginning, 
for  there  was  one  long  storm  of  ridi(nile  and  hisses, 
yells  and  hoots,  from  her  own  door  to  that  whieh  she 
went  to  seek.  Her  sisters  tried  to  shame  her,  and 
bade  her  stay  at  home,  but  she  would  not  obey  ;  and 
all  the  idlers,  seeing  this  strange  little  creature  in  her 
odd  array,  eried, '' Sl:.ame !  "  But  she  went  on,  for 
she  was  greatly  resol/ed  ;  it  may  bo  that  some  si)irit 
had  inspired  her. 

Now  this  poor  small  wretch  in  \iov  mad  attiro,  with 
her  hair  singed  off  and  her  little  faet^  as  full  of  burns 
and  sears  as  there  are  holes  in  a  sieve,  was,  for  all 
this,  most  kindly  received  by  the  sister  of  the  Invis- 
ible One  ;  for  this  noble  girl  knew  more  than  the  mere 
outside  of  things  as  the  world  knows  them.  And  as 
the  brown  of  the  evening  sky  became  black,  she  took 
her  down  to  the  lake.  And  erelong  the  girls  knew 
that  lie  had  come.     Then  the  sister  said,  "  Do  you 

ter  can  have  tho  tlua  dark  brown  coat  scraped  awny,  leaving  a 
very  liglit  yellowish-brown  p^T'onnd.  Toniali  Josephs  and  his 
niece  Susan,  of  Princeton,  Maine,  arc  experts  at  this  work. 

^  This  remark  indicates  the  lateness  of  the  ISIicmac  version  of 
this  very  old  myt)i. 


TUK  INVIfijniE   ONE.  807 

fl(»o  him?"  Ami  tlu»  other  ivpliod  witli  awe,  ''Truly 
I  th),  —  and  lie  is  woiuh'r.iil."  *' And  what  is  liis 
bled-strinjj  ?  "  "It  is,"  slic  replied,  "  thi'  Rainbow." 
And  great  fear  was  on  \wv.  "  lint,  my  .sister,"  said 
tho  otlior,  "what  is  his  bow-string?"  "His  bow- 
string is  Jictifksoowowcht  "  (tho  Spirits'  Koad,  tho 
Milky  Way).i 

"  Thou  hast  seen  him,"  said  the  sister.  And,  tak- 
ing tho  girl  home,  sho  bathed  her,  and  as  she  washed 
all  tho  scars  dlsap})eared  from  face  and  body.  Her 
hair  grew  again  ;  it  was  very  long,  and  like  a  black- 
bird's wing.  Her  eyes  were  like  stars.  In  all  the 
world  was  no  such  beauty.  Then  from  her  treasure's 
she  gave  her  a  wedding  garnu'ut,  and  adorned  her. 
Under  tho  cond),  as  sho  eond)ed  her,  her  hair  grow. 
It  was  a  great  marvel  to  bishold. 

Then,  having  done  this,  she  bade  her  take  tho  irife''s 
scat  in  the  wigwam,  —  that  hy  which  her  brother  sat, 
the  seat  next  the  door.  And  when  Ho  entered,  t(.'rri- 
blo  and  beautiful,  ho  smiled  and  said,  "  Wajoolkoos  /^^ 
"  So  wc  are  found  out !  "  "  AhijuhnL''  "  Yes,"  was 
her  reply.     So  sho  became  his  wife.'-^ 

^  The  Spirits'  or  flhosts'  lload,  so  callod  booaiise  it  is  Ixjliovi'd 
to  1)0  tlio  hif^liway  by  wliicli  .s[)irit.s  pass  to  and  from  tho  earth. 
Tho  Alioiiiac  version,  bolItlU'd  and  rodiiocd  in  ovory  way,  limits 
this  reply  to  "  a  piece  of  a  rainbow."  There  is  a  ji^randenr  of 
conception  in  the  Passamacpioddy  myth  whioh  recalls  the  most 
Btupondou.s  similes  in  Scripture. 

2  This  is  the  true  end  of  this  Indian  Cnpid  and  Psyche  h'^j^cnd. 
But  tho  Micmacs  havinj:^,  for  no  apparr;nt  rea.'.on,  made  the  Stu- 
pendous Deity  of  tho  Heavens  a  moose  (Teiim),  have  added  to  it 


308      THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

another  for  the  sake  of  tlio  name,  and  which  I  give  in  due  suc- 
cession simply  as  an  iUnstrution  of  the  manner  in  whicli  tales  are 
tacked  togellu'r.  I  have  very  little  donbt  that  tlie  story  as  here 
{•iven  is  an  old  solar  niytli.  worked  nj),  perliaps,  witii  the  story  of 
Cinderella,  derived  from  a  Canadian-French  source.  There  are 
enough  of  these  French-Indian  stories  in  my  possession  alone  to 
form  what  would  make  one  of  the  most  interesting  volumes  of 
the  scriea  of  the  CoiUes  Populaires.  The  rassanuupioddy  version 
is  to  this  etfect  :  "  There  was  a  great  being,  a  mighty  hunter, 
who  had  a  wife,  of  wond(>rful  magic  gifts,  and  a  hoy  ;  and  the 
child  became  blind.  After  a  long  time  his  sight  returned,  and 
he  said  so  ;  but  his  nu)ther  was  suspicious,  and  did  not  bcdieve 
him."  It  is  evident  that  she  suspected  that  he  saw  by  dairooy- 
ance,  not  by  literal  vision.  "  So  one  day  she  bade  her  husband 
put  on  certain  things  which  no  one  coidd  behold  who  did  not  see 
them  in  truth.  Then  she  asked  the  boy,  *  What  has  your  father 
for  a  sled-string?'  (literally  for  a  moose-runner  haul).  And 
he  replied,  '  The  rainbow  to  haul  by.'  Then  she  asked  him  yet 
again,  '  What  has  he  for  a  bow-string  ?  '  And  he  answered, 
*  KeUaksoo  wowcht ;  '  '  The  Spirits'  or  Ghosts'  Road.'  And  once 
more  she  iufjuired,  '  What  has  he  on  his  sled  ?  '  To  which  he 
said,  *  A  beaver.'  Then  she  knew  ti:at  he  could  indeed  sec." 
(T.  Josephs.) 

We  can  perceive  by  shreds  and  patches  such  as  these  the  nil 
hut  loss  of  an  early  and  grand  mythology  which  has  undergone 
the  usual  transmutation  into  romantic  and  nursery  h'gends.  By 
great  exertion  we  might  recover  it,  but  the  old  Indians  who  re- 
tain its  fragments  are  passing  away  rapidly,  and  no  subject  at- 
ti'acts  so  little  interest  among  our  literati,  A  few  hundred  dol- 
lars expended  aiunially  in  each  State  would  result  in  the  collec- 
tion of  all  that  is  extant  of  this  folk-lore  ;  and  a  hundred  years 
hence  some  few  will,  perhaps,  regret  that  it  was  not  done. 

It  may  be  observed  that  in  the  Edda  the  rainbow  is  the  heav- 
enly road  over  which  the  gods  pass.  The  rainbow  is  not  the 
Milky  Way,  but  it  may  be  observed  that  in  this  tale  the  two  are 


THE  INVISIBLE  ONE.  309 

curiously   comp.'irod,   or  jilmnst   identified.     Hut   according    to 

Chiirles  Francis  Keary  (Mi/l/iolor/ij  of  the  EdduK,  London,  188LJ), 

"  tliere  is  small  hint  in  the   Edda  of  the  use  oi"  the  niinhoiu  as  a 

path  tor  souls,  save  where  llelgi  says  to  his  wife,  — 

"  '  'T  is  tiiiu!  for  iiie  to  riJo  tlio  rinldy  road, 

And  on  iny  horse  to  trcatl  tlio  path  of  (light,'  " 

which  18  moi-e  ai)plicahle  to  the  jNlilky  W'ay  than  the  rainhow. 
"  We  owe,"  he  says,  "  to  the  learned  Adalliert  Kuhn  some  re- 
searches which  have  traced  the  path  of  the  jSlilky  Way  as  a 
bridge  of  souls  from  its  first  appearance  in  Kastern  creeds  to  its 
hitcr  appearance  hi  inedianal  (icrmun  tradition."  (ZciLschri/t  f.  v. 
Up,  L  f.)  In  the  Vcdas  the  Milky  Way  is  called  the  Gods'  Path. 
Tlie  American  Indians  fhinly  believe  that  the  Spirits'  Road  is 
one  of  their  very  earliest  traditions,  and  I  l)elieve  with  them  that 
they  had  it  long  before  Columbus  iliscovered  this  comitry. 

Since  the  foregoing  remarks  were  written,  Mrs.  W.  Wallace 
Brown  has  obtained  the  following  fragment,  which  was  given  as 
a  song,  and  declared  to  be  very  ancient  :  — 

"  There  was  a  woman,  long,  long  ago ; 

She  came  out  of  a  liole. 

In  it  d(>ad  people  were  buried. 

She  made  her  house  in  a  tree  ; 

She  was  dressed  in  leaves, 

All  lonjf  ago. 

Wlicn  she  walked  anionR  the  dry  leaves 

Her  feet  were  so  covered 

The  feet  were  invisible. 

She  walked  throutjh  the  woods, 

Singing  all  llie  time, 
'  I  want  company  ;  I  'm  lonesome  ! ' 

A  wild  man  heard  her  : 

From  afar  over  the  lakes  and  moimtiins 

He  came  to  her. 

She  saw  him  ;  she  w.ia  afraid; 

Slie  tried  to  flee  away, 

For  he  was  covered  with  the  rainbow  ; 

Color  and  liK'ht  were  liiii  garments. 

She  ran,  and  he  pursued  rapiilly  ; 

He  chased  her  to  the  foot  of  a  mountain. 


310  THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

He  spoke  in  a  strange  language ; 

Blie  could  uot  understand  him  at  flrst. 

He  would  make  her  tell  where  she  dwelt. 

Xliey  married  ;  they  had  two  children. 

One  of  them  was  a  lx)y  ; 

He  was  blind  from  hi.s  birth, 

But  he  friglitened  liis  mother  by  his  sight. 

He  could  tell  her  what  was  comiug, 

What  was  coming  from  afar. 

What  was  near  he  could  not  see. 

He  could  see  the  bear  and  the  mooso 

Far  away  beyond  the  mountains  ; 

He  could  see  through  everything." 

The  old  Iiuliiui  woman  ended  this  story  by  saying  abruptly, 
"Don't  know  any  more.  Guess  they  all  eat  up  by  mooin"  (tho 
bear).  She  said  that  it  was  only  a  fragment.  "If  you  could 
have  beard  her  repeat  this,"  adds  Mrs.  Brown,  "  in  pieces,  stop- 
ping to  explain  what  the  characters  said,  and  describing  how 
they  looked,  and  anon  singing  it  again,  you  would  have  got  the 
inner  sense  of  a  wonderfully  weird  tale.  The  woman's  feet  cov- 
ering and  the  man's  dress  like  a  raud)ow,  yet  not  one,  which 
made  their  bodies  invisible,  seemed  to  exercise  her  imagination 
strangely  ;  and  these  were  to  her  the  most  important  part  of  tho 
story."  The  fragment  is  part  of  a  very  old  myth  ;  I  regret  to 
Sfiy  a  very  obscure  one. 


STOKY  OF  THE  TIIllEE  STKONG  MEN. 

(Micmae.) 

There  was  a  chieftain  in  the  days  of  yore.  IIo 
liad  a  great  desire  for  a  poor  girl  who  was  a  servant, 
and  who  worked  for  him.  To  win  this  girl  he  first 
must  lose  his  wife.  lie  took  his  wife  afar  into  the 
woods  to  gather  spruce-gum,  and  then  left  her  there. 

She  soon  found  out  that  she  had  lost  her  way,  and, 
wandering,  she  lost  it  more  and  more  for  many  days, 
until  she  came  at  last  to  a  bear's  den,  where,  going  in, 
she  found  the  Cliief  of  all  the  bears,  who  welcomed 
her,  provided  for  her  wants,  and  furnished  her  with 
pleasant  food  ;  but  as  the  meat  was  raw  he  went  into 
a  neighboring  town  for  fire.  And  as  she  lived  with 
him  she  was  to  him  in  all  things  as  he  wished,  and  as 
a  wife. 

So  that  it  came  to  pass,  as  time  went  on,  that  a 
new-comer  was  expected,  and  she  bade  the  Bear  pro- 
vide the  baby's  clothes.  And  when  the  long-ex})ected 
infant  came  it  was  a  boy,  large,  beautiful,  and  strong : 
he  was  in  everything  beyond  all  other  boys. 

And  as  the  child  was  born  in  a  strange  way,  he 
very  soon  displayed  a  magic  power.  No  bal)y  ever 
grew  so  rai)idly :  when  four  niontlis  old  he  wrestled 
with  the  Bear  and  threw  him  easily  ui)()n  the  floor. 
And  so  the  mother  saw  that  he  would  be  a  warrior, 
and  the  chief  of  other  men. 


312  THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

She  loatlicd  the  life  she  led,  and  wished  to  leave, 
and  live  as  she  had  done  in  days  of  old.  To  this  the 
Bear  would  in  nowise  consent,  and  as  her  son  was 
human,  like  herself,  he  loved  his  mother  best,  and 
thought  with  her. 

One  day  he  said,  "  Now  I  can  wrestle  well  and 
throw  the  Bear  as  often  as  I  choose.  When  I  next 
time  cast  him  upon  the  ground,  catch  up  a  club  ;  the 
rest  remains  for  you  !  " 

They  waited  yet  a  while  till  he  had  grown  so  strong 
that  the  Bear  was  nothing  in  his  gi'asp.  One  day  they 
wrestled  as  they  ever  did,  and  then  the  woman,  with  a 
vigorous  blow,  strengthened  by  hate  and  famishing 
desire  of  freedom  and  a  better  human  life,  laid  him 
in  death  upon  the  mossy  floor. 

They  went  their  way  back  to  the  chieftain's  town, 
and  found  him  married  to  the  servant-girl.  The  mother 
only  spoke,  and  the  wild  boy  tore  down  the  wigwam 
of  the  Indian  chief  just  with  a  blow,  and  then  he 
called  aloud  unto  the  Lightning  in  the  sky  above, 
"  Come  down  to  me  and  hel})  me  in  my  need  !  Build 
a  grand  wigwam  such  as  man  ne'er  saw !  Build  it, 
I  say,  and  for  my  mother  here  !  " 

The  Lightning  came,  and  with  a  single  flash  built 
such  a  home  as  man  had  never  seen. 

And  then  lie  said,  "  Mother,  I  mean  to  go  and  travel 
everywhere,  until  I  find  another  man  who  is  as  strong 
as  1.      VV^hen  he  is  found  I  will  return  to  thee." 

So  on  ho  went  afar  until  he  saw  a  man  who  lifted 
up  a  vast  canoe  with  many  people  in  it.     This  he  did. 


THE    THREE   STRONG  MEN.  313 

raising  it  in  the  water ;  but  the  boy  bore  it  asliorc,  uiul 
lifted  it  on  hind. 

And  so  the  two  agreed  that  they  wouhl  go  on  to- 
gether until  they  found  a  third  equal  to  them  in 
strength,  if  such  a  man  were  living  anywhere  in  all 
the  world. 

So  traveling  by  hill  and  lake,  tlu^y  went,  until  one 
day,  far  in  a  lonely  land,  they  saw  a  man  rolling 
a  mighty  roek,  large  as  the  largest  wigwam,  up  a  hill. 
But  the  Bear's  son,  lifting  the  stone  with  ease,  threw 
it  afar  over  the  mountain-top,  —  tlirew  it  afar  beyond 
the  rocky  range ;  they  heard  it  thunder  down  the 
de])ths  below. 

Then  the  three  strong  men  went  to  hunt  the  moose. 
lie  who  had  tossed  the  ship  remained  in  camp  to  do 
the  cooking,  while  the  others  went  with  bow  and  spear 
afar  to  find  their  game. 

Now  when  the  sun  was  at  the  edge  of  noon,  just 
balancing  to  fall,  there  came  a  boy,  a  little  wretclu^d, 
elfisli-looking  chihl,  as  sad  and  sickly  as  a  boy  could 
be,  who  asked  the  man  for  food.  He  answered  him, 
"  Poor  little  fellow  !  there,  the  i)ot  is  full  of  venison, 
so  go  and  eat  your  fill." 

He  ate,  indeed,  the  dinner  for  the  three.  When  he 
had  done  he  did  not  leave  a  scrap ;  then  walked  into 
the  stony  mountain-side,  as  any  man  might  walk  into 
the  fog,  and  in  a  second  he  was  seen  no  more. 

Now  when  the  two  returned  and  heard  the  tale 
they  were  right  angry,  being  lumgry  men.  The  num 
who  rolled  the  stone  stayed  next  in  turn,  but  when  the 


814  THE  ALGONQUIN  LJCGKNDS. 

little  fellow  came  to  him  he  seemed  so  famished  and 
he  shed  such  tears  that  this  one  also  gave  him  leave  to 
eat.  Then,  in  a  single  swallow,  as  it  seemed,  he 
bolted  all  the  food,  and  yelled  ah)ud  with  an  insulting 
laugh.  The  man,  enraged,  grapi)led  him  by  the  throat, 
but  the  strange  boy  fluiig  him  away  as  one  would 
throw  a  nut,  and  vanished  in  the  mountain  as  before. 

On  the  third  day  the  mighty  man  himself  remained 
at  home,  and  soon  the  starveling  child  (;ame  and 
began  to  beg,  with  tears,  for  food.  "  Eat,"  said  the 
chief,  "  as  other  people  eat,  and  no  more  tricks,  or 
I  will  deal  with  you."  But  as  it  was  with  him  the  day 
before,  so  it  went  now  ;  he  swallowed  all  the  meat 
with  the  same  jeering  yell.  Then  the  strong  man 
closed  with  the  boy.  It  was  an  awful  strife  ;  they 
fought  together  from  the  early  morn  until  the  sun 
went  down,  and  then  tlie  Elf  —  for  elf  he  was  —  cried 
out,  *'  I  now  give  in !  "  So  both  his  arms  were 
tightly  bound  behind,  and  with  a  long,  tough  cord  of 
plaited  hide  the  strong  man  kept  his  prey,  the  lariat 
fast  noosed  about  his  neck.  The  child  went  on,  the 
strong  man  ever  following  behind,  holding  the  cord 
well  twisted  round  his  hand. 

And  so  they  went  into  the  mountain-side,  and  ever 
on,  a  long  and  winding  way,  down  a  deep  cavern,  on 
for  many  a  mile,  —  the  light  of  sorcery  shining  from 
the  elf  made  it  all  (ilear,  —  until  at  last  the  guide 
stopped  in  his  course,  and  said :  — 

"•  Now  list  to  me.  I  am  the  servant  of  a  frightful 
fiend,  a  seven-headed  devil,  whom  I  deemed  no  man 


THE   THREE  STRONG  MEN.  315 

could  over  coiKinor,  ho  and  1  being  of  e(iiial  strength ; 
but  I  believe  tbat  thou  mayst  eonqiuT  him,  since  I 
have  found,  by  bitter  proof,  that  thou  canst  eonciiier 
me.  Here  is  a  statf,  the  only  thing  on  earth  that  man 
may  smite  him  with  and  give  him  pain.  Now,  do  your 
best ;  it  is  all  one  to  me  which  of  you  gains,  so  one  of 
you  be  slain,  for  well  I  wot  't  will  l)o  a  roaring  fight." 

In  came  the  evil  being  with  a  scream,  and  clutched 
the  Indian  with  teeth  and  claws.  There,  in  the  magic 
cavern,  many  a  mile  from  the  sun's  rays,  they  fought 
for  seven  days,  the  stubborn  devil  and  the  stul)born 
man,  whose  savage  temper  gave  him  fresher  streng-th 
with  every  fresh  wound  ;  the  more  his  blood  ran  from 
his  body  all  the  more  his  heart  grew  harder  with  the 
love  of  fight,  until  he  beat  away  the  monster's  seven 
heads.  And  so  he  slew  him,  and  the  watching  elf  burst 
into  laughter  at  the  victory, 

"  Now,"  said  the  Elf,  "  I  have  a  gift  for  thee.  I 
have  three  sisters :  all  are  beautiful,  and  all  shall  be 
thine  own  if  thou  wilt  l)ut  unbind  my  hands."  The 
strong  man  set  him  free.  And  so  he  led  the  man  to 
another  cave,  and  there  he  saw  three  girls  so  strangely 
fair  they  seemed  to  be  a  dream.  The  first,  indeed, 
was  very  beautifid,  and  yet  as  plump  as  she  was 
lovely ;  then  the  second  maid  was  tall,  superb,  and 
most  magnificent,  in  rarest  furs,  with  richest  wamj)um 
bands,  the  very  picture  of  a  perfect  bride  ;  but  fairer 
than  them  both,  as  nuich  more  fair  as  swans  outrival 
ducks,  the  youngest  smiled.  And  the  young  chieftain 
chose  her  for  his  own. 


816  THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

Witli  till)  throe  girls  ho  wont  into  tho  day.  Far  on 
tho  rocks  above  him  he  could  soe  his  two  companions, 
and  a  sudden  thought  came  to  his  mind,  for  he  was 
quick  to  think;  and  so  he  called,  "I  say,  let  down 
a  rope ;  I  have  three  girls  here,  and  they  cannot 
climb."  And  so  the  two  strong  men  let  down  a  cord : 
then  tho  first  faiiy-maid  went  up  by  it,  and  then  the 
second.  Now  the  chief  cried  out,  "  It  is  my  turn ; 
now  you  nuist  pull  on  mo !  "  And  saying  this,  he  tied 
a  heavy  stone,  just  his  own  weight,  unto  the  long 
rope's  end,  then  bid  them  haul.  It  rose,  but  as  it 
came  just  to  the  top  the  traitors  let  it  fall,  as  he  sup- 
posed they  would,  to  murder  him. 

And  then  tho  chieftain  said  unto  the  elf,  "  You 
know  the  mountain  and  its  winding  ways:  bear  me 
upon  thy  back,  and  that  in  haste,  to  where  those  fel- 
lows are  !  "  The  goblin  flew,  and  in  an  instant  he 
was  by  their  side. 

lie  found  the  villains  in  a  deadly  fight,  quarrel- 
ing for  the  maids ;  but  seeing  him  they  ceased  to 
wrestle,  upon  which  he  said,  "  I  risked  my  life  to 
bring  away  these  girls ;  I  would  have  given  each  of 
you  a  wife  :  for  doing  this  you  would  have  murdered 
me.  Now  1  could  kill  you,  and  you  both  deserve 
death  at  the  stake,  vile  serpents  that  you  are;  but 
take  your  lives,  —  you  are  too  low  for  me,  —  and  with 
them  take  these  women,  if  they  wish  to  wed  with  such 
incarnate  brutes  as  you  !  " 

They  went  their  way  ;  the  women  followed  them 
along  the  forest  paths,  and  ever  on.  Into  this  story 
they  return  no  more. 


rilE   TIIIIEE  STRONG  MEN.  317 

And  then  the  strong  man  saiil  to  his  young  bride, 
"  I  nuist  return  unto  my  village  ;  tiien  1  '11  come  agiiiu 
to  you  ;  await  me  here."  Jiut  she,  as  one  to  «llin 
magic  born,  replied,  "  I  warn  you  of  a  single  thing. 
When  you  again  are  at  your  wigwam  door  a  small 
black  dog  will  leap  to  lick  your  hand.  Beware,  I 
say;  if  he  succeed  in  it,  you  surely  will  forget  me  ut- 
terly.''    As  she  predicted  so  it  came  to  pass. 

And  so  she  waited  in  the  lonely  wood  beside  the 
mountain  till  a  month  was  gone,  and  then  arose  and 
went  to  seek  her  love.  All  in  the  early  dawn  she 
reached  the  town,  and  found  the  wigwam  of  tlie  saga- 
more. She  sought  a  neighboring  hiding-place,  where 
she  might  watch  unseen,  and  found  a  tree,  a  broad  old 
ash,  which  spread  its  stooping  boughs  over  the  surface 
of  a  silent  pool. 

An  old  black  Indian  had  a  hut  hard  by.  His 
daughter,  coming,  looked  into  the  si)ring,  and  saw  a 
lovely  face.  The  simple  girl  thought  it  was  hers,  her 
own  grown  beautiful  by  sorcery  which  hung  about  the 
place.  She  flung  away  her  pail,  and  said,  "  Aha ! 
I  '11  work  no  more ;  some  chief  shall  marry  me  !  " 
and  so  she  went  to  smile  amonij:  the  men. 

Then  came  the  mother,  who  beheld  the  same  sweet, 
smiling,  also  girlish  face.  She,  said,  "  Now  I  am  young 
and  beautifiU  again  ;  I  '11  seek  another  husband,  and  at 
once."  She  threw  her  pail  afar  and  went  away,  losing 
no  time  to  smile  among  the  men. 

And  then  in  turn  the  old  black  Indian  came,  and 
looking  in  the  spring  beheld  the  face.     He  knew  right 


818  THE  ALGONQUIN  LECENDS. 

well  that  it  was  not  his  own,  for  in  his  youth  ho  never 
had  been  fair.  So  lookinj^  uj)  al)()Vo  ho  saw  the  l)ii<lo, 
and  bado  her  conio  to  him  ;  and  tlum  ho  said,  "  My 
wifo  lias  gone  away  ;  my  daughter,  too.  You  wore  tho 
cause  of  it ;  it  is  but  right  that  you  should  take  tlio 
place  my  wifo  has  left.  Tliorefore  remain  with  mo 
and  be  my  own." 

He  faros  but  ill  who  weds  unwilling  witch.  When 
night  came  on  they  laid  them  down  to  sleep,  and  then 
the  bride  nnn-murod  a  magic  })rayer,  begging  tho 
awful  Spirit  of  the  Wind,  the  giant  Eagle  of  the 
wilderness,  to  do  his  worst.  A  fearful  tempest  blow, 
and  all  niglit  long  the  old  black  Indian  was  out-of- 
doors,  working  with  all  his  power  to  keep  the  lodge 
from  being  blown  away.  As  soon  as  he  had  pinned 
one  sheet  of  bark  into  its  place  another  blew  away, 
and  then  a  tent  pole  rattling  in  the  rain  bounded 
afar.  It  was  a  weary  work,  but  all  niglit  long  the 
young  bride  slept  in  peace,  until  the  morning  came, 
and  then  ho  slept. 

Then  she  arose,  and,  walking  to  the  wood,  sat  do^v^l 
beside  a  stream  and  sang  a  song  :  — 

"  There  are  many  men  in  the  world, 
But  only  one  is  dear  to  lue. 
He  is  good  and  brave  and  strong. 
He  swore  to  love  none  but  me  ; 
He  has  forgotten  me. 
It  was  a  bad  spirit  that  changed  liim, 
But  I  will  love  none  but  him." 

And  as  she  sat  and  sang,  the  sagamore  her  husband, 


THE   TUnEE  STRONG  MEN,  819 

j)a(l(llinj^  by  in  his  otinop,  heard  the  sweet  sonj^  in- 
toned in  nuij;ie  style,'  and  all  ai.  once  reealleil  what 
had  been  lost,  —  tiie  two  strong  j;iantH,  the  eavein  an<l 
the  elf,  th(;  seven-headed  monster  and  the  fight,  the 
sisters  and  the  ovil-niinded  men,  and  the  blaek  dog 
who  leaped  to  liek  his  hand  :  it  Hashed  ni)on  him 
like  some  early  dream  brought  out  by  soreery.  JIo 
saw  her  sit  beside  the  stream,  and  still  he  heard  her 
song,  soft  as  a  magic  tlute.  lie  went  to  her,  and  in 
a  minute  he  was  won  again. 

And  then  she  said,  ''  This  world  is  ever  false.  I 
know  another,  let  us  go  to  it."  So  then  again  she  sang 
a  nuigic  spell,  and  as  she  sang  they  saw  the  great  Cul- 
loo,  the  giant  bird,  broad  as  a  thunder  cloud,  winging 
his  way  towards  them.  Tlien  he  came  ;  they  stejjped 
upon  him,  and  he  soared  away.  I5ut  to  this  earth  they 
never  came  again. 

This  very  singidar  legend  was  obtained  for  me  by 
Mrs.  W.  Wallace  Brown.  It  is  from  the  Miemac,  and 
is  in  the  original  from  beginning  to  end  a  song,  or 
})ocm.  For  this  reason  I  have  given  it  a  plain  met- 
rical form,  neither  prose  nor  poetry,  such  being  quite 
the  character  of  the  oriiiinal.  But  I  have  not  intro- 
duced  anything  not  in  the  original. 

This   story  consists  of   a  very  old    Indian    legend 

^  Not  o\\\y  the  words,  but  the  ])eculiar  intonations  of  them, 
were  essential  to  produce  tlio  proper  effect  of  a  majific  song.  An 
intelligent  white  in.an  has  left  it  on  record  that  it  retpiired  two 
years  to  learn  one  of  these  incantations  of  only  a  few  Hues. 


820  THE  ALGONilUIN  LEHENDS. 

luinj^led  with  a  Eur<)jM>an  fairy  tale  drawn  through 
a  Fronch-Caiiadian  source.  'I'ho  ineideiit  of  the  I'ilf 
who  eats  the  food  of  three  men  is  to  he  found  in  an- 
oth(U'  tale.  In  one  version,  the  bride,  findii.j;  that  her 
hushand,  th()U{j;h  utterly  deprived  hy  niaj^ic  of  his 
memory,  lias  married  ajjjain,  sails  away  on  the  great 
bird,  leavini;  him  forever.  I  have  naturally  rejected 
this  senseless  termination  in  favor  of  one  found  in  an- 
other form. 

The  calling  on  the  Lightning  to  build  a  wigwam  Is 
probably  a  mistake.  It  is  more  likely  that  it  was  sum- 
moned to  destroy  the  cliii'f's  wigwam,  but  the  narra- 
tor, confused  with  the  subject  of  the  hero's  strength, 
changed  the  original.  Tiie  invocations  of  Lightning, 
and  subsecpiently  of  the  Storm  liird  are  probably  en- 
tirely Indian,  though  there  are  Norse  invocations  to 
Ilroesvelgar,  or  the  Eagle  of  the  Northwest,  as  we 
read  in  Scott's  Pirate. 

The  black  whelp  or  small  black  dog  is  in  this  talo 
ominous  of  evil.  It  causes  oblivion.  In  the  Edda  to 
dream  of  the  same  thing  is  the  most  evil  of  all  Atli's 
bad  dreams  (vide  the  second  lay  of  Gudrun,  41)  :  — 

"  Seemed  to  me  from  my  hand 
Whelps  I  hit  Hlip. 
Liieking  eause  of  joy  ;  " 

and  in  the  very  same  song  (24)  he  takes  a  potion 
which  causes  oblivion.  But  there  is  even  a  third 
point  in  the  Atlamal  in  (iroonlenzku,  which  resem- 
bles one  in  the  Indian  tide.  It  is  where  the  lialf  en- 
chantress Kostbera  warns  Ilogui  against  leaving  her  : 


THE   Til  REE  ST  HON  r,   MEN.  821- 

"  Kroiii  lioiuc  thou  urt  goiny  : 
Give  our  tu  oomirii'I  ; 
I'Vw  jin«  fully  pnuloiit  ; 
Gu  anuthur  tiuiu." 

In  tlio  Norso  lay  wo  are  told  tliat  to  dream  of  a 
wliito  bear  indicates  a  storm,  l)ut  here  it  means  a 
strange  and  terrible  event.  Lon;j;  before  I  met  witii 
this,  I  ol)served  that  the  introduction,  or  laention,  of 
a  white  bear-skin  in  tiiese  Indian  stories  invariably 
intimates  some  strange  niaj;ieal  changt;. 

Jhit  it  is  most  remarkable  of  all,  that,  while  tiie 
poems  of  the  Ktlda  have  nothing  but  a  very  few  in- 
cidents in  eonunon  with  the  traditions  oi  the  western 
tribes,  they  are  inspired  throughout  with  a  strange  and 
mysterious  sentiment  or  manner  wonderfully  like  tliat 
of  the  Wabanaki.  As  regards  literal  resemblanei!  the 
following  eoincidencoH  may  here  be  noted. 

In  a  widely  s})read  Norse  tale  a  very  small  gol)liu 
sustains  a  long  and  obstinate  contest  witli  an  immense 
white  bear. 

The  Norsemen  invoked  the  Eagle  Giant  of  the 
Winds,  as  Scott  has  shown  in  his  song  of  the  Keim- 
kennar.     The  same  being  is  invoked  in  this  legend. 

The  whelp,  as  an  omen  of  evil,  is  mentioned  in  the 
Edda.  In  this  tale  he  causes  forgetfulness.  A  })otion 
of  oblivion  is  also  mentioned  in  the  Norse  poem  in 
close  connection  with  the  omen  of  the  dog. 

If  we  accept  the  termination  of  this  tale  as  given 

in  the  Micmac  poem  it  amounts  to  this  :  A  certain 

woman   causes  the  whelp   to  lick  the   hero's   hand. 
91 


322  THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

This  causes  forgctf illness.  The  hero  marries  her,  and 
tlierehy  loses  his  first  wife.  In  the  Edda,  Brynhiid, 
who  has  morally  the  first  claim  to  Sigurd,  sayri  of 
Crymhild,  "  She  i)resented  to  Si<^urd  the  pernicious 
drink,  so  that  he  no  more  remembers  me."  In  the 
saga  of  Thorstein,  Viking's  son  the  hero,  is  made  by 
the  witch  Dis  to  utterly  forget  his  bride  Ilunoor. 

The  Kalinuk  tale  of  llow  the  Schimm-Khan  was 
Slain  contains  striking  analogies  to  this  of  the  Three 
Strong  jVIen.^  In  it  the  hero  associates  with  three 
men,  who  take  turns  to  cook.  Their  food  is  devoured, 
as  in  this  tale,  every  day  by  a  little  old  witch  who  is 
very  strong.  lie  overcomes  her  by  (U'aft.  His  com- 
panions, instead  of  drawing  him  up  by  the  rope,  as 
agreed  on,  leave  him  to  perish,  in  order  to  possess 
themselves  of  a  treasure.  There  can  be  no  doi  »t  as 
to  the  Hindoo  origin  of  this  and  many  more  plots 
found  among  the  red  Indians.  But  a  careful  study 
of  the  Norse  story  convinces  me  that  the  tale  did 
not  come  to  the  Wabanaki  through  any  other  than  a 
Norse  source. 

Since  writing  out  the  foregoing  poem,  with  the  com- 
ment, I  have  received  from  Louis  Mitchell  the  Pe- 
nobscot version  of  it.  It  is  about  twice  as  long  as  the 
Micmac  story,  and  differs  from  it  very  materially.  In 
it  the  hero  conquers  the  goblin  by  getting  possession 
of  his  red  cap.  In  the  Norse  tales  the  same  incident 
occurs  in  different  forms.  He  then  fights  with  a 
copper  demon ;  also  with  one  of  silver  and  another  of 
*  Sagas  from  the  Far  East,  Loudon,  1873. 


THE    THREE  ST  RON  d  MEN.  323 

gold.  Eaoli  devil,  whilo  he  is  sharpening  his  sword, 
exchiims,  "Hurry!  hurry!  lam  hungry!"  Tho  last 
of  tho  three,  the  Kche  rfiitche-hant,  or  great  devil,  has 
three  heads,  which  replace  themselves  when  cut  off ; 
but  the  hero  summons  a  lion  Qpeetahlo)  and  an  eagle, 
who  devour  each  a  head,  when  the  demon,  to  save  the 
last,  surrenders.  There  are  old  "  aboriginal  "  inci- 
dents in  this  Passaniatpioddy  tale,  but  the  European 
elements  predominate  to  such  an  extent  as  to  call  for 
the  following  remark  from  tho  Indian  writer :  — 

"  This  story  is  ended.  When  Indians  in  it,  as  they 
do  in  many  others,  speak  of  kings  and  queens  or  sliips 
and  ivory,  I  think  they  got  it  all  from  Europe.  But 
perliaps  when  the  Indians  came  here  from  Asia  they 
brought  these  stories  with  them.  Thus  they  very 
often  mention  ivory,  calling  it  white  bone.  They  also 
mention  cities.  But  these  things  are  not  new,  for 
they  were  handed  down  from  one  generation  to  an- 
other." 

I  have  to  add  that,  while  the  story  agrees  with  an 
universally  spread  Aryan  fairy  tale,  it  is  very  remark- 
able that  it  should  add  to  these,  several  strictly  Ed- 
daic  details,  such  as  the  white  bear. 


THE  WEEWILLMEKQ'. 

I.   How  a    Woman  Lost  a  Gun  for  Fear  of  the  Wee- 

ivlllmekq\ 

There  was  a  man  and  his  wife  who  had  got  to- 
gether all  thoy  had  for  the  fall  hunt.  They  went  np 
the  St.  John's  lliver  ;  they  left  the  village  of  Foxer- 
bica;  they  went  twenty-five  miles  beyond  it.  They 
passed  the  falls  on  the  ui)per  side  to  get  some  game. 
They  cooked  and  ate.  They  got  ready  to  start  again  ; 
they  launched  the  canoe.^  •  They  shoved  the  canoe 
twenty-five  feet  from  the  shore.  The  woman  turned, 
and  upset  it.  It  went  like  lightning  down  the  rapids. 
They  had  hard  work  to  get  ashore,  and  lost  their 
gun,  traps,  kettle,  and  everything.  They  escaped  with 
great  trouble  ;  they  had  trouble  to  save  their  canoe. 

The  man  was  in  great  grief  at  the  loss  of  his  gun. 
He  sat  down  and  sang :  — 

"  Nici  sigi  psach  kc-yin, 
Dich  m'cljel  mieol  wagb  nuch'." 

I  am  sorry, 

I  am  iu  great  trouble. 

There  came  two  Indians  down  to  the  portage  where 
the  man  and  his  wife  sat.     They  asked  him  why  he 

^  This  story  and  the  preceding  are  taken  word  for  word  from 
the  Indinn  narration.  Mie  singidar  precision  of  minute  details 
is  very  characteristic  of  many  of  these  legends. 


rilE    WEEW1LLMEKQ\  325 

was  so  sad.  IIo  told  thorn  all.  One  of  them  was  a 
micoulin.  He  asked  of  them,  "  Could  you  tell  your 
gun  if  you  saw  it  ?  "  The  woman  cried  quickly,  "■  I 
could  !  "  Ho  was  not  pleased  at  her  forwardness,  but 
put  the  question  again ;  when  slie  as  pertly  answered, 
"  Yes,"  for  her  husband.  He  looked  sternly  at  her, 
and  said,  "  Are  you  sure  ? "  To  which  she  cried, 
"Yes,  yes!"  Then  he  said,  "If  you  are  very  bold, 
and  not  afraid  of  anything,  you  may  get  it  again." 
And  this,  too,  she  took  on  herself,  saying,  "  Oli,  yes, 
/'w  not  afraid;  I'll  get  it,"  making  no  account  of 
her  husband. 

Then,  by  the  order  of  the  man,  she  went  to  a  ledge 
just  below  the  falls,  where  they  are  s{!venty-five  feet 
high.  T]iere  was  a  little  projecting  rock  on  wlilch 
she  could  just  sit,  —  a  horrible  place.  Below  it  was 
a  dreadful  eddy,  in  which  nothing  could  live.  lie 
helped^  her  down  to  it,  and  she  was  in  mortal  terror, 
as  such  glib-tongued  women  generally  are  when  there 
is  the  least  danger.     Then  the  man  went  away. 

And  as  she  sat  there,  trembling  and  half  dead  with 
fright,  she  saw  Something  come  up  out  of  the  eddy, 
—  even  out  of  the  worst  of  it.  It  rose  ;  it  was  '  ^ 
awful  sight,  —  a  kind  of  monstrous  head,  witli  great 
forked  horns  and  terrible  eyes.  She  was  stiff  as  a 
stone  with  fear.  The  lost  gun  lay  crosswise  on  the 
prongs  of  the  horns.  It  moved  slowly  on  through  the 
eddy,  glaring  at  her.  It  came  nearer  and  nearer ; 
the  gun  was  withir.  her  reach,  but  she  was  too  fright- 
ened to  touch  it.     Then  the  monster  passed  by  and 


320  THE   ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

sank  into  the  water,  and  was  seen  no  more,  nor  was 
the  gun. 

They  got  her  back  with  trouble  from  the  place 
where  she  sat.  The  m'tcouli?i  was  furious  with  rage 
at  lier,  that  he  had  taken  such  pains  for  iiotlung.  lie 
said,  "  Tliis  serves  you  right  for  your  impudence  and 
forwardness.  Learn  your  proper  place,  and  never 
undertake  to  do  what  is  none  of  your  business."  He 
then  condoled  with  the  husband,  but  said,  "  If  you 
coidd  give  me  all  you  could  think  of,  1  could  never 
get  your  gun  again." 

By  this  women  may  learn  not  to  speak  too  quickly, 
or  propose  to  do  men's  duties,  "//w  'sami  nzama 
which  ice.e  lei  ri'aga  samce  n  gamma  loiool  ^9e<i/i7.'* 
(P.  "  Too  quick  w^itli  the  tongue,  slow  with  the 
hands."!) 

1  Tliough  the  Weewillmekq'  is  a  worm  inhabiting  the  forest 
and  found  in  dry  wood,  it  is  certainly  identified,  or  confused,  by 
the  Passamaquoddy  Indians  with  the  alligator,  or  some  kind  of 
a  horrible  water-goblin,  which  appears  to  have  many  points  in 
common  with  the  Chepitchcalm,  or  dragon  of  the  Miemacs.  This 
story  was  related  to  me  by  Tomah  Josephs,  now  Indian  governor 
at  Princeton,  Maine. 

Among  various  notes  I  find  the  following  :  — 
"  llie  weewillmekq'  becomes  human  at  tunes,  even  now." 
"  Six  years  ago,"  said  T.  J.,  "  I  was  in  the  woods  collecting 
bcughs,  and  I  saw  a  weew'dlmehf  on  a  tree.  The  thimder  kept 
approaching  the  tree  on  which  it  was,  and  finally  struck  it.  It 
seemed  to  me  as  if  the  worm  had  attracted  the  lightning."  (Au- 
gust 26,  1883.) 

"  The  Weewilhnekq'  is  a  small  worm,  sometimes  two  or  tliree 
inches  long.     It  is   seen  sometimes  in  the  water  as  large  as 


THE    WEEWILLMEKQ\  327 

II.   Miiggahmahfadem,   the    Dance  of  Old  A(/e,  or  the 
Magic  of  the  Weewillmehf } 

(Passamaqiioddy.) 

Of  old  times.  There  lived  in  a  village  many  In- 
dians. Among  them  was  a  handsomi!  young  man, 
very  brave,  a  great  hunter.  And  there  was  a  beau- 
tiful girL  Wliat  was  her  name  ?  Malili-hahn-sqwess, 
or  Kaliwahdazi,  —  I  don't  remember  which.  But  slio 
was  proud  and  high-tempered,  and,  what  was  worse, 
a  great  witcli,  but  nobody  knew  it.  Slie  wanted  the 
yoimg  man  to  marry  her,  but  he  was  very  busy  get- 
ting ready  for  the  fall  and  winter  hunt,  and  had  no 
time  to  attend  to  sueh  a  thing ;  and  told  her  so  very 
plainly. 

Yes,  he  must  have  been  very  plain  with  her,  for  she 
was  very  angry,  and  said  to  him,  "  You  may  go ;  but 
you  will  never  return  as  you  went."  She  meant  that 
he  would  be  ill  or  changed.  He  gave  no  heed  to  her 
words ;  he  did  not  care  for  her  nor  fear  her.     But  far 

a  horse.  Tlicn  it  has  horns.  It  is  a  very  horrible-looking  little 
worm." 

^  This  mysterious  being  is  called  Wee-wil-li-ah-mek  in  Penob- 
scot. Tlie  correct  pronunciation  is  very  nearly  We^-wil-l-mekqu' 
for  both  Penobscot  and  Passaniaquoddy,  but  this  would  be  a  difti- 
ciilt  utterance  for  any  one  who  hiis  never  listoned  to  the  Algon- 
quin soft  gutturals. 

Mrs.  W.  Wallace  Brown  informs  me  that  "  the  Weewillmekqu* 
is  a  snail,"  This  would  account  for  its  being  thought  to  inhabit 
both  land  and  water. 


328      THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

away  in  tlic  woods,  far  in  the  north,  in  midwinter, 
he  went  raging  mad.  The  witch  had  struck  him,  when 
far  away,  with  hor  magic. 

He  had  with  him  an  elder  brother,  a  great  brave,  a 
very  fierce  man.  lie,  not  being  able  to  do  aught  else, 
did  the  nu)st  desperate  thing  a  Wabanaki  ludian  can 
do.  He  went  down  to  the  river,  and  sang  the  song 
which  calls  the  Wccwill7nekq\ 

"  We  (pio  moh  wee  will  I'mick, 
We  que  nioh  m'ciha  inicso, 
Soin'awo  wee  will  I'niick  ! 
Caidiip  ke  su  iii'so  wo  Sawo  ! " 

I  call  on  the  Wee-will-rmick  I 
1  call  on  the  Terrible  One  ! 
On  the  One  with  the  Horns  ! 
I  dare  him  to  appear  ! 

It  came  to  him  in  all  its  terrors.  Its  eyes  were 
like  fire  ;  its  horns  rose.  It  asked  him  what  he  wanted. 
lie  said  that  he  wished  his  brother  to  be  in  his  right 
mind  again. 

"  I  will  give  you  what  you  v/ant,"  said  the  Wee- 
willmekq',  "  if  you  are  not  afraid." 

"  I  am  not  afraid  of  anything,"  said  the  Indian. 

"Not  of  me?" 

"  Not  of  you  nor  of  Mitche-hant,  the  devil  himself." 

"  If  you  dare  take  me  by  my  horns  and  scrape 
somewhat  from  one  of  them  with  your  knife,"  said 
the  monster,  "  you  may  have  your  wish." 

Now  this  Indian  was  indeed  as  savage  and  brave  as 
the  devil ;  and  he  had  need  to  be  so  to  do  this,  for 


THE    WKFAVILLMEKQ'.  329 

tlio  Wee\villmc'k(i'  looked  liis  very  worst.  But  tlio 
iiuin  drew  lii.s  knife  and  scraped  from  the  horn  till  lio 
was  told  that  he  had  enough. 

"  Go  to  your  camp,"  said  the  Worm.  "  I'ut  half 
the  scrapings  into  a  enp  of  water.  Make  your  brother 
drink  it." 

"  And  the  other  half  ?  "  asked  the  Indian. 

"  Give  it  to  the  girl  who  made  all  this  trouble.  Sho 
needs  medicine,  too." 

lie  returned  to  camp,  and  j^ave  the  drink  to  his 
brother,  who  recovered.  When  the  hunt  was  at  an 
end  they  went  home. 

They  arrived  at  night.  There  was  an  Immense 
lodge  in  the  town,  and  a  dance  was  going  on.  The 
younger  brother  had  prepared  a  cool  drink,  —  sweet 
with  ma])le-sugar,  fragrant  with  herbs,  —  and  in  it 
was  the  powder  of  the  horn  of  the  Weewillmek(j['. 
The  witch,  warm  and  very  thirsty  from  dancing,  came 
to  the  door.  lie  offered  her  the  cup.  Without  heed- 
ing who  gave  it,  she  drank  it  dry,  and,  turning  to  her 
partner,  went  on  in  the  dance. 

And  then  a  strange  thing  haiipened.  For  at  every 
turn  of  the  dance  she  grew  a  year  older.  She  began 
as  a  young  girl ;  when  at  the  end  of  the  room  she 
was  fifty  years  of  age ;  and  when  she  got  back  to  the 
door  whence  she  started  she  fell  dead  on  the  floor, 
at  the  feet  of  him  who  gave  her  the  drink,  a  little 
wrinkled,  wizened-up  old  S(|uaw  of  a  hundred  years. 

Aha^  yes  f  tcood  enit  atokhdhrjen^  vmrjfjoh  wjilit 
aclcm.     This  is  the  story  of  the  Dance  of  Old  AgQ. 


330      THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

But  you  may  call  it  Sehtccjah^  the  Dance  of  Death, 
if  you  like  it  better.^ 

///.    Another  Version  of  the  Dance  of  Old  Age. 
( l'aH.saiu:i({U()  Jdy .) 

It  was  in  the  autunui,  the  time  when  Indians  go  up 
the  rivers  to  their  hunting-j^rounds,  that  two  young 
men  left  home.  They  ascended  the  stream  ;  they  came 
to  a  branch,  where  they  parted  :  one  going  alone,  an- 
other with  his  married  brother.  This  Litter,  with  the 
brother,  had  left  in  the  village  a  female  friend,  a 
witch,  who  had  forbidden  him  to  go  hunting,  but  he 
had  not  obeyed  her. 

And  she  had  cause  to  keep  him  at  home,  for,  when 
he  was  afar  in  the  woods,  and  alone,  he  met  one  day 
with  a  very  beautiful  girl,  who  fascinated  him,  and 
gave  herself  to  him.  And  when  he  said  that  he  did 
not  know  how  to  conceal  her  from  his  friends  she  told 
him  that  she  was  a  fairy,  and  coidd  make  herself  as 
small  as  a  newly  born  squirrel,  and  that  all  he  need 
do  was  to  wrap  her  up  in  a  handkerchief  and  carry 
her  in  his  pocket.  When  alone,  he  could  take  her  out, 
enjoy  her  company,  and  then  reduce  and  fold  her  up 
and  put  her  away  again. 

^  This  extraordinary  story  was  related  to  me  by  Noel  Joseph, 
at  Canipobello,  August  20,  1883.  I  am  indebted  to  Mrs.  W. 
Wallace  IJrown  for  the  ineantation  song.  The  Weewillniekq' 
lias,  as  it  appears  in  several  tales,  an  extraordinary  resemblance 
to  the  Norse  dragon.  It  cures  mental  diseases.  It  seems  to  be 
the  same  with  the  Chepitchcalm. 


THE   WEEWILLMEKiV.  331 

He  (lid  so,  but  from  that  hour,  whilo  he  carried 
the  fairy  near  his  heart,  he  beyau  to  bo  wicked  and 
■stianj^e.  TJiis  was  nut  caused  by  her,  but  by  the  {j;irl 
at  home.  He  was  entirely  changed  ;  he  grew  devil- 
ish ;  ho  refused  to  eat,  and  never  H])()ke.  His  sister- 
in-law  began  to  fear  him.  \Mien  she  offered  liini  food 
he  cried  out,  '"''  Unless  I  can  devour  one  of  your  chil- 
dren I  will  have  nothiuu"  !  " 

When  his  brother  returned  and  heard  all  this,  ho, 
too,  offered  him  meat,  but  met  with  a  refusal  and  the 
reply,  "  Give  me  one  of  your  little  ciiiliben."  To 
which  he  answered,  "  The  child  is  so  small  that  it  will 
not  satisfy  you.  Let  me  go  and  get  a  larger  one." 
Then  he  ran  to  the  village  and  informed  his  friends  of 
what  had  come  over  the  brother.  And  as  they  knew 
that  he  was  about  to  become  a  kewaJiqa  (jihcnoo) 
they  resolved  to  kill  him. 

But  there  was  a  young  man  there,  a  friend  of  the 
sufferer,  who  said  that  he  could  save  him.  So  all  who 
were  assembled  bade  him  try. 

And  wlien  niglit  came  he  went  apart,  and  began  to 
sing  his  mteoulin^  or  magic  song.  When  it  ended 
there  was  a  loud  sound  as  of  some  heavy  body  falling 
and  striking  the  earth,  which  fairly  sliook.  The  next 
morninjr  he  called  all  his  friends  and  the  married 
brother,  and  showed  them  a  human  corpse.  "  Now 
leave  me,"  he  said.  "■  Go  to  my  fri(uid  and  tell  liim 
that  1  have  food  for  him."  The  Indians  did  so,  and 
in  horror  left  the  tw^o  cannibals  to  devour  their  dis- 
gusting meal.     When  the  insane  youth  was  satisfied, 


832  THE  AUWNQUIN  LEGENDF. 

his  friend  asked,  "  Ilavo  yoii  had  ononj^li  ?  "  IIo  rc- 
jdied  tliat  he  had.'  Tlieii  the  inn;^ieiaii  said,  "  Yoii  aro 
bewitched  l)y  the  <^irl  wlio  loil>a(hi  jou  to  go  hunting  ; 
she  knew  you  wouhl  iind  a  maid  better  than  she  is. 
Now  come  with  nio." 

They  went  to  a  small  lake  ;  they  sat  down  by  Its 
side  ;  the  son^erer  began  his  magie  song.  And  as  ho 
Bang  the  waters  opened ;  from  the  disturbed  waves  rose 
a  huge  Weewillmek(|',  a  creature  like  an  alligator, 
with  horns.  And,  as  the  terrible  being  eame  ashore, 
the  magician  said,  "Go  and  serape  somewhat  from 
liis  horn  and  bring  it  here !  "  The  young  man  had 
become  fearless  ;  he  went  and  did  as  he  was  bid  : 
he  scraped  the  horn,  and  brought  the  scraping. 

"  Now,  my  friend,"  said  the  magician,  '*  let  us  try 
this  on  a  tree."  There  was  a  large  green  beech  grow- 
ing by  them.  It  was  simply  touched  with  the  frag- 
ment from  the  horn  when  another  color  spread  all  over 
the  bark  as  rapidly  as  the  eye  could  follow  it :  in  an 
instant  it  was  dead,  and  in  a  few  minutes  more  it  fell 
to  the  ground,  utterly  rotten,  as  if  it  were  a  century 
old. 

"Now,"  said  the  sorcerer,  "  we  will  experiment  with 
this  on  the  witch  who  wishes  to  destroy  you."  So  as 
it  was  night  they  went  to  the  village.  A  dance  was 
being  held,  and  the  beautiful  tall  witch  having  paused 
to  rest,  the  two  men  approached  her.  The  young  man 
placed  his  hand  on  her  head  ;  he  held  in  it  a  scraping 

^  The  hiunan  body  which  supplied  the  meal  was  probably  in 
reality  a  doer,  or  some  such  auiuial. 


Tin:    \VEEWII.LMEKQ\  883 

of  tho  horn  of  i\\o.  vwcwUbnckq.  Ah  ho  did  so  sho 
grew  older  in  an  instant,  —  sho  h(K'iuno  very  old  ;  a 
palo  color  iii)i)li-d  all  over  her;  wlu;  fell,  L)ol<in<;  a 
hundred  years,  dead  on  the  floor,  Hhriveleil,  dried,  and 
drop})ed  to  j)o\vder. 

"  Sho  will  not  trouhlc  you  any  more,"  Raltl  tlie  sor- 
cerer.    "  Her  daneo  ia  over." 

This  is  tho  same  story  as  the  prcccdinj:^,  }„it  I  give 
it  to  show  how  differently  a  talo  may  bo  told  by  neigh- 
bors. In  one  it  is  tho  .yjrctm  injuria  foi'jfuv,  the 
wrath  of  rejected  love,  which  inspires  tho  witdi  to 
revenge  ;  in  tho  other  it  is  jealousy.  In  one  sho  in- 
flicts madness;  in  tho  other  she  turns  him  into  a 
cannibal  demon,  as  Loki,  when  only  half  bad,  was 
made  utterly  so  l)y  getting  the  "  thought-stone  "  or 
heart  of  a  witch.  This  legend  was  sent  to  me  by 
Louis  Mitchell.  It  is  written  not  by  him,  but  by 
some  other  Passamaquoddy,  in  Indian-English. 


TALES  OF  MAGIC. 

UTtcoulin,  or  Indian  Magic. 

TriE  study  of  ma^^ic  as  it  is  believed  in  or  under- 
stood i)y  the  Indians  of  America  is  extremely  interest- 
ing-, for  it  involves  that  of  all  supernaturalism  or  of 
all  religion  whatever.  l)ut  if  we,  declining  all  ques- 
tion as  to  the  (u-igin  of  monotheism,  limit  ourselves 
definitely  to  what  is  known  of  Shamanism  alone, 
we  shall  still  have  before  us  an  inuuense  field  for 
investigation.  Shamanism  is  the  belief  that  all  the 
events  and  accidents  of  life  are  caused  or  influ- 
enced by  8i)irits,  and  as  fear  of  suffering  is  in  all 
men,  but  particularly  the  savage,  the  strongest  moral 
emotion,  the  natural  consequence  is  a  greater  fear  of 
evil  invisible  bein<rs.  The  residt  of  it  is  a  faith  that 
everything  which  is  obscure  or  invisible  is  sujjposed 
to  be  the  work  of  mysterious  agents,  generally  evil. 
Thus  all  disease  whatever,  all  suffering,  pain,  loss,  or 
disaster,  or  bad  weather,  is  at  once  attributed  either 
to  a  sjiirit  or  to  sv)me  enemy  who  practices  witchcraft. 
The  Slianum  is  the  priest  or  doctor,  who  professes  to 
be  able,  by  his  counter-charms,  to  counteract  or  neu- 
tralize this  devil's  work. 

It  will  be  \<n\^  ere  the  scholar  definitely  determines 
whether  bhamauism  as  it  now  exists  originated  spon- 


TALES   OF  MAGIC.  3o5 

taiicfmsly  in  (Ufforcnt  countrios  where  tlio  same  causes 
were  to  be  found,  or  whether  it  is  historkuil ;  tluit  is, 
derived  from  a  single  souree.  1  believe  tliat  \ihile 
darkness,  hunger,  fear,  and  similar  causes  could  not 
fail  to  create  a  rude  religion  anywliere,  as  Moncure 
Conway  has  shown,  yet  that  the  derivation  from  ono 
b(!ginning,  or  at  least  later  modiiieations  from  it,  has 
bi'en  very  great  indeed. 

Investigation  indicates  that  it  was  in  Assyria,  at  a 
very  remote  age,  that  Shamanism  had,  if  not  its  origin, 
at  least  its  fullest  dev(dopment.  The  reader  who  will 
consult  Lenormant's  work  on  Chahleau  magic  will 
learn  from  it  tliat  the  fear  of  devils  and  the  art  of 
neutralizing  their  power  were  never  carried  to  such 
an  extent  elsewhere  as  in  the  Land  of  Bel.  Now  as 
Shamanism  has  at  the  present  day  its  stronghold 
among  tlie  Turanian  races  of  Central  Asia,  it  may 
greatly  strengthen  the  theory,  somewhat  doubted  of 
late,  of  the  early  Accadian  i)redecessors  of  the  Chal- 
deans and  their  Turanian  origin,  if  we  can  only  prove 
that  their  magical  religion  was  the  same  as  that  of  the 
Tartars.  So  far  as  my  reading  has  aided  mo,  I  am 
inclined  to  believe  that  they  are  identicyl.  "  Magic  " 
went  so  far  among  the  former  that,  while  they  dis- 
covered natural  remedies  for  natural  ills,  they  never 
doubted  that  one  was  as  nnich  the  result  of  sorcery  as 
the  other.     This  theory  s])read  everywhere. 

Shamanism,  or  a  vague  fear  of  invisible  evils  and 
the  sorcerer,  may  indeed  have  sprung  uj)  independently 
in  Tartary,  Central  Africa,  Finland,  and  Morth  iViuer- 


33G  THE  ALGO.\QUIN  LEGENDS. 

ica.  But  it  is  almost  iiiere(lil)lo  that  the  use  of  a  drum 
inserihed  with  musical  fij»uros,  tiie  spirit  tlii;ht  of  the 
au;;ai<ok  or  Shauian,  and  twouty  other  charaeteristics 
of  the  art  slioultl  have  become,  without  transmissiou, 
comuion  to  till  these  countries.  Shamanism  has  j)rob- 
al)ly  been  at  the  root  of  all  reli<2^ions  ;  there  was  a  ^reat 
deal  of  it  in  all  those  of  the  Semitic  races,  and,  ad- 
mitting this,  it  is  not  difficult  to  see  how  from  Chaldea 
and  JJabylon  it  may  have  found  its  way  into  Africa, 
where  black  savagcss,  who  woidd  have  rejected  a  higher 
religion,  would  grasp  greedily  at  what  they  syju})!!- 
thized  with.  The  only  real  difference  between  the 
Voodoo  and  Pow-wow  i)ractices  is  that  the  former  is, 
so  to  speak,  the  blacker  and  more  revolting.  This  is 
because  a  low  state  of  culture  has  induced  the  believers 
in  it  to  retain  more  of  the  coarse  witchcraft  on  which 
Shamanism  was  based,  or  out  of  which  it  grew. 

For  wherever  Shamanism  exists,  there  is  to  be 
found,  in  company  with  it,  an  older  sorcery,  or  witch- 
ci'aft,  which  it  professes  to  despise,  and  against  which 
it  does  battle.  As  the  Catholic  priest,  by  Bible  in- 
cantations or  scriptural  magic,  exorcises  devils  and 
charms  cattle  or  sore  throats,  disowning  the  darker 
magic  of  older  days,  so  the  Shaman  acts  against  the 
real  unaard.  Ivink  tells  us  that  among  the  heathen 
Eskimo  the  Shaman  is  sacred,  and  witchcraft  a  deadly 
crime,  but  that  the  latter  is  the  secret  si.rvival  of  a 
more  ancient  religion.  Voodoo,  whether  j)racticed,  as 
it  is  to-day,  in  Philadeli)hia,  New  York,  Havana,  or 
Senegambia,  deals  with  alleged  devils,  poisons,  chicken 


TALns   OF  MAGIC.  337 

l)onos,  tlic  ivoiyroot,  unniitural  orcjios,  — all,  in  short, 
that  can  staitlo  and  astonish  ij^norant  natures  ;  it  is 
the  combination  of  tlie  oldest  faith  with  its  successor. 
Far  higher  forms  are  those  of  the  mai^ic  of  the  black 
Tokoiri'i  \\\\im\  out;  meets  divininc:^  about  the  streets  of 
Cairo,  or  of  th.?  Arab  i)roper,  which  brings  us  fairly 
to  the  Cabala  and  the  Jew,  Cornelius  Agripj)a  uud 
Elijdias  J^evi. 

It  is  not  difficult  to  understand  how  Shamanism, 
with  its  dr.uns  and  darkened  rooms,  its  conjuring  of 
cvil-<loers  and  extraction  of  dis(;ases  in  tangible  forms, 
should  have  sjiread  from  Central  Asia  to  the  Lai)land- 
era  and  Eskimo,  and  thence  to  tlio  red  Indians.  Very 
little  attention  has  been  paid  to  the  intercourse  act- 
ually existing  at  the  ])resent  day  between  these  races. 
I  have  met  with  a  Passama(|uo(ldy  Indian  who  spoko 
French  well,  who  had  been  educated  at  a  mission 
school,  and  who  had  been  among  the  Eskimo.  As 
regards  Icgf.nids  and  folk-lore,  iu:>  one  can  read  tho 
Ehkinio  tales  and  those  of  this  volume  and  not  feel 
that  the  Algon([uin  is  to  the  man  (^f  the  icy  north 
what  the  gypsy  is  to  the  Hindoo.  As  regards  tho 
early  religion  of  bi^th  races,  it  is  simply  iddntlcal^nmX 
it  is  far  too  peculiar  in  its  many  similar  details  to 
have  simply  sprung  up,  as  many  might  assume,  from 
the  common  likeness  in  customs  of  all  savages.  For 
there  is  in  both  a  great  deal  of  "  llterarv  "  culture, 
espeelully  in  tho  -(Vlgonqain,  and  it  would  be  little  less 
than  ralraculous  that  this  too  should  have  assimilated 
by  chance.  It  does  not  help  the  "  opposition "  to 
22 


338  THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

point  out  that  Alj^onqnin  lof^ciuls  declare  that  their 
ancestors  came  from  the  west.  Even  so,  they  came 
from  the  J^icific  coast,  wlicre  Kskimo  Shamanism 
exists  in  its  most  decided  forms.  But  in  any  ease 
it  cannot  he  (h'uied  that  in  th«5  red  Indian  mytholoj^^y 
of  New  En^dand,  and  of  Canada  and  New  liruns- 
wick,  we  have  a  coHection  of  vigorous,  icy,  powerful 
legends,  like  those  of  a  strong  nortliern  race,  wiiilo 
those  of  the  middle  continent,  or  Ciiii)i)ewa,  are  far 
feebler  and  gentler.  Hiawatha-Manobozho  is  to  Glooa- 
kap  as  a  flute  to  a  war  trumpet. 

It  is  absurd  to  laugh  at  or  pity  the  Indian  for  be- 
lieving in  his  magic.  Living  as  he  does  in  the  woods, 
becoming  familiar  with  animals,  and  learning  how 
much  more  intelligent  and  allied  to  man  they  are 
than  civilized  man  supposes,  he  believes  they  have 
souls,  and  were  perhaps  originally  human.  Balaam's 
ass  spoke  once  for  every  Christian  ;  every  animal 
spoke  once  for  the  Indian.  If  a  child  can  be  put  to 
sleep  by  singing  to  it,  why  cannot  insensibility  to  pain 
or  a  cure  be  caused  by  the  same  process  ?  He  is  told 
that  the  wafer  becomes  the  body  of  Christ ;  this  may 
confirm  his  belief  that  the  Indian  god  Manobozho 
turned  bits  of  his  own  flesh  or  his  wife's  into  raccoons, 
for  food.  If  it  is  difficult  for  any  educated  or  culti- 
vated man  to  conceive  how,  if  any  condition  or  phase 
of  supernaturalism  be  admitted,  any  other  can  be  de- 
nied, how  can  the  Indian  bo  logically  blamed  for  be- 
lieving anything?  But  the  greatest  cause  of  all  for  a 
faith  in  nuigie  is  one  which  the  white  man  talks  about 


TALES  OF  MA  arc.  339 

without  fcoHiifj,  and  which  tho  Indian  fools  without 
talking  uhout  it.  1  moan  tho  poi^try  of  nature,  with 
all  its  (juaiut  and  boautlfiii  superstitions.  To  ovcry 
Algonquin  a  rotton  lo<;  by  the  road,  covered  witli  moss, 
8Ug;i;ests  the  wild  legend  of  the  log-doniou  ;  the  Indiau 
corn  and  sweet  Hag  in  the  swamp  are  the  descendants 
of  beautiful  spirits  who  still  live  in  them ;  Meeko,  the 
stpiirrol,  has  tho  power  of  becoming  a  giant  monster  ; 
flowers,  beasts,  trees,  have  all  loved  and  talked  and 
sung,  and  can  even  now  do  so,  should  the  magician 
only  come  to  speak  the  spell.  And  there  are  such 
magicians.  Why  should  he  doubt  it  ?  If  the  squirrel 
once  yielded  to  such  a  power  in  man,  it  follows  that 
some  man  may  still  have  the  power,  or  that  ho  himself 
m.iy  acquire  it.  iVnd  how  much  of  this  feeling  of  tho 
real  poetry  of  nature  does  the  white  man  or  woman 
possess,  who  pities  the  poor  ignorant  Indian  ?  A  few 
second-hand  scrajis  of  I5yron  and  Tui)i)or,  Tennyson 
and  Longfellow,  t\m  jingle  of  a  few  rhymes  and  a  few 
similes,  and  a  little  second-hand  sui)ornaturalism,  more 
"accepted"  than  felt,  and  that  derived  from  far 
foreign  sources,  does  not  give  tho  white  man  what  tho 
Indian  fcch.  Joe,  or  Noel,  or  vSabattis  may  seem  to 
tho  American  Philistine  to  be  a  ragged,  miserable, 
ignorant  Indian;  but  to  the  scholtir  he  is  by  far  the 
Philistine's  superior  in  that  which  life  is  best  worth 
living  for. 

The  magic  of  the  Passama((uoddy  and  Penobscot, 
like  the  magicaan  himself,  is  called  iiK'teotrlni^  in\1c'no- 
lin,  or  vi^teoulin.     It  is  the  saiue  eit'ectively  as  rneda, 


840      THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

which  ia  from  tlio  samo  root.  It  is  a  ])owcr,  but 
oj)inions  differ  as  to  how  it  is  acciuircd.  It  is  ceitaiii, 
as  I  was  told  hy  an  old  J\'issainaquoddy  Indian,  of 
Sebayk,  near  mjxdx'llo,  that  soino  children  are  horn 
rrCteouIin.  They  manifest  it,  even  while  hahes,  by 
beinj;  capricdoiis,  eccentric,  and  nudicions.  Others 
acquire  the  art  as  they  grow  older.  From  all  that  I 
have  heard  I  infer  that  iiitcoului  takes  two  forms, 
—  one  of  witchcraft,  the  other  of  magic.  The  former 
is  innate,  or  may  be  acquired ;  the  latter,  for  aught  1 
know,  may  bo  sometimes  inborn,  but  is  generally  ac- 
quired by  fasting,  abstinence  of  other  kinds,  and  cer- 
emonies. The  two  are  distinctly  different,  liink 
found  in  Greenland  and  I^abrador  that  the  Eskimo, 
as  I  have  said,  made  tin's  difference. 

I  will  now  give,  word  for  word,  the  remarks  of  cer- 
tain Indians  on  this  subject,  beginning  with  those  of 
an  intelligent  and  pros})erous  old  man,  wlio  is  cer- 
tainly enlightened  and  Christianized  very  nnu-h  bc- 
vond  the  average  of  his  race.  1  had  asked  him  if 
there  were  any  mteoulin^  or  magicians,  living,  lie 
replied :  — 

"There  are.  Many  at  St.  John  and  Sebayk  are 
still  m^taouUn.  I  saw  this  myself  thirty-five  years 
ago  at  St.  John's.  There  was  a  deaf  Indian  there. 
The  white  men  were  abusing  him.  They  spat  on  him. 
By  and  by  a  mteoului  from  St.  John's  came,  a  man 
of  thirty-five  or  forty.  I  saw  this.  The  rnteoulln 
asked  them  not  to  abuse  the  deaf  and  dumb  Indian. 
They  turned  on  the  niteoulin.     Then  ho  screamed  so 


TALr:S  OF  MAGIC,  5U1 

horribly,  so  awfully,  aiul  looki'il  s«»  liko  a  devil  that 
tlio  iiuMi  were  fri<;liUiu'«l.  Tluy  tell  on  their  kuucs, 
and  (MHild  not  iiiovo.     They  let  the  man  j;o." 

This  is  precisely  what  is  narrated  by  many  writers 
of  the  Shaman  screaming  and  tlistorting  of  the  feti- 
tnres.  Very  few  ])e()|)le  know  of  what  the  human 
voice  is  capable.  It  can  not  only  be  trained  to  divino 
song,  Imt  to  such  dcmonia<'al  howling  as  to  deafen 
and  api)all  even  the  guai'dians  of  a  lunatic  jisylum.  In 
Lajdand,  Central  Asia,  or  on  Nootka  Sound  the  in- 
itiated are  trained  in  remote  solitudes  to  these  utter- 
ances, to  which  no  one  can  listen  without  terror.  My 
informant  continued  :  — 

*'  Two  or  three  weeks  after  I  was  in  another  place. 
We  spoke  of  the  niti'ou/ui.  The  white  folks  ridi- 
culed tlu'm.  I  said  there  was  one  in  Fredericton,  and 
I  said  I  would  bet  ten  dollars  that  he  would  get  the 
better  of  them.  And  they  bet  that  no  Indian  could 
do  more  than  they  could.  So  the  mtenulin  came. 
And  first  of  all  he  screamed  so  that  no  one  coidvl 
move.  It  was  dreadful.  Then  he  took  scvtin  steps 
through  the  ground  up  to  his  ankles,  juf<t  as  if  it  hdd 
been  lir/ht  S7ioiL\  When  I  asked  for  the  ten  dollars, 
the  white  men  paid.     I  gave  it  to  the  m^teoulin.'''' 

Among  the  Greenland  Eskimo  the  sorcerer,  writes 
Kink,  "after  meeting  with  tomassuh,  or  guai-dian  spir- 
its, sometimes  manifests  it  by  his  feet  sinking  into  the 
rocky  ground  just  as  if  in  snon\'^  He  uses  the  very 
words  of  the  Indian  who  described  the  same  thing  to 
me.     And  very  recently  in  Philadelphia,  in  fact  while 


342  THE  AIJJONQUIN  LKGENDS. 

I  WHS  writing  tlio  prt't'otliiig  remarks,  a  spiritualist 
naiiUHl  (iordon  lu-rformed  tlie  very  same  triek.  Hav- 
ing' been  deteeted,  a  full  .'lecount  of  the  manner  of 
action  appeared  in  tiie  Press  of  that  city.  It  wjvs 
done  by  a  peculiar  method  of  Ht<>oi)ing,  and  of  con- 
cealing the  stooj)  behind  a  skirt.  It  was  a  very  odd 
coincidence  that  the  explanation  should  thus  present 
itself  while  I  was  seeking  it. 

This  Shaman  Eskimo  trick  was  known  to  the  Norse- 
men. In  the  Saga  of  Thorstein  it  i^  said  that  Ogan- 
tun,  a  noted  sorcerer,  when  stabbed  at,  "  thrust  him- 
self down  into  the  ground,  so  that  only  the  soles  of 
his  feet  coiUd  be  seen ;  "  and  of  Kol  it  was  said  that 
"he  could  i)ass  through  the  earth  as  well  as  walk 
upon  it.'' 

"Women  are  sometimes  ni'teonlin.  There  is  one 
at   Psesuk  (Bar    Harbor)   now,   this   summer.     You 

have  met   her.     Sh«;  is  's  wife.'     If  you  offend 

her  she  can  hurt  you  in  strange  ways. 

"  She  is  a  good  doctor.  Once  she  cured  a  man. 
When  he  got  well  he  eoiJd  not  pay  her  for  the  med- 
icine.    His  name  is  Louis  .     She  asked  for  her 

money ;  she  asked  many  times  ;  she  could  not  get  it. 
lie  was  going  to  the  woods,  far  away,  to  trap  ;  he  said 
he  would  pay  her  when  he  returned,  but  she  wanted  it 
then.  She  said,  *  1  will  never  forget  this ;  I  will  be 
revenged.'  He  went  far  up  the  St.  John  River  with 
his  traps  ;  he  set  them  in  the  stream  for  beaver.     All 

*  I  am  at'(ju!iiiited  with  all  the  parties,  but  for  obvious  reasons 
suppress  their  names. 


ta/j:s  of  ma(;/c,  348 

tliut  ho  caught  tli;it  winttT  was  sticks,  and  somotiiues 
an  oil.  Tlifii  at  tlic  end  of  tin;  day  ho  would  say  to 
liis  man,  '  It  is  of  no  uso.'  And  then  tlioy  could  hoar 
the  witch  lau<;hin;^  boliind  tho  hushes,  and  tittering 
when  ho  came  homo.  So  it  went  on  h)n<^.  Then  ho 
was  sorry,  and  said,  '  I  wish  I  had  paid  that  woman 
what  1  owed  her.'  And  at  oneo  they  hoard  a  voieo 
from  the  hushes,  or  rocks,  say,  '  Louis,  that  will  do. 
It  is  onouj^h.'  And  tho  next  day  they  caught  two 
beaver,  and  every  day  two,  and  so  ou,  till  tho  season 
was  over. 

''  This  happened  in  1872,  in  Miramichi  AN'ators." 

There  does  not  ai)poar  to  bo  any  single  approved 
method  of  acquiring  rn'taouUn.  Some,  as  1  havo 
said,  are  born  to  it,  but  they  ai)pcar  to  bo  wizards  or 
witches.  Others  are  formally  trained  from  boyhood 
by  tho  ex])erienced  magicians.  Others  acquire  cer- 
tain gifts  by  certain  ceremonies  or  penances.  Of  tliis 
kind  was  the  power  obtained  in  tho  manner  narrated 
in  tho  following  story,  which  1  hoard  from  an  old 
l'assama(j[uoddy  :  — 

"  There  was  ouoe  a  young  man  who  wished  to  bo- 
come  a  very  wise  and  bravo  warrior,  like  his  father. 
And  his  father  said  to  him,  '  1  get  all  my  luck  of 
every  kind  from  my  dreams.  You  can  havo  such 
dreams  ;  any  man  can,  if  ho  will  do  a  certain  thing ; 
but  that  thing  is  not  easy  for  a  young  man  like  you. 
You  must  sleep  seven  nights  with  a  virgin,  and  never 
touch  her.' 

"  Tho  young  man  thought  this  over  for  a  few  days, 


844  rilE  ALGONQUIN  LEOENns. 

and  tlien  iusked  hi.s  futhur  how  it  could  bo  arranged  or 
nuuKigt'd. 

*' ••  1  will  tell  you,'  replied  the  old  in:in.  *  Find  a 
girl ;  the  more  beautiful  hIio  in  and  tlie  more  you 
want  her,  the  stronger  tlie  magic  will  be.  Go  to  the 
parents  for  their  daughter  as  a  wife.  Cheat  them  ho. 
Before  you  marry  get  seven  bear-skins,  and  let  no 
man  except  one  know  anything  about  it.  Make  him 
clean  tliem.  One  skin  should  be  cleaned  every  twenty- 
four  hours.     Seven  days  must  pass  so.' 

"  Tlie  young  man  was  accepted  by  the  jiarents  ;  ho 
sent  the  seven  bear-skins  to  the  young  woman  :  tliey 
were  married  ;  they  went  to  their  wigwam,  lie  lay 
on  the  bear-skins  ;  he  directed  his  wife  to  make  an- 
other bed  and  sleep  on  it.  Th(!y  lay  apart.  The 
bride  tlu)ught  this  was  strange  ;  slu;  told  her  mother 
of  it.  The  mother  said,  'Never  lulnd.  By  and  by 
it  will  be  all  right.'  The  wile  thought  it  was  all 
wrong.  When  seven  nights  had  passed  the  bride- 
groom disa})i)eared.  lie  was  not  seen  in  his  village 
for  twenty-live  or  thirty  years.  Then  he  returned  to 
his  father,  lie  could  divine  all  things  by  dreams. 
lie  had  but  to  take  the  magic  bear-skin  and  sleep  on 
it,  and  dream.  He  could  tell  where  to  fuid  good  hunt- 
ing or  fishing.  He  foredrcamed  war  with  the  Mo- 
hawks. Can  any  man  do  this  ?  They  say  so,  and  I 
have  known  many  who  tried  it  in  vain.  They  could 
not  pass  the  trial  successfully." 

"  There   are  stones   m   the  forest  with  names  on| 
them.     They  give  great  power  to  dream.     I  have  seei 


I 


TALES  OF  MAGIC.  345 

in  my  dreams  the  mtroulin  of  ancuMit  times,  —  tlio 
m;i;;i('i.'inH,  my  fatlior  told  me,  «)t"  l(Ui<,'  uyo.  1  liavo 
seen  them  tlivinj,'  nnder  the  waters  from  one  island  to 
another.     1  have  seen  them  dive  ten  miles. 

"  U'lien  1  was  young,  .1.  N.,  wiio  was  a  great  m'te- 
uitlin^  offered  to  teaeh  mo  the  art.  I  eould  have  be- 
come one,  but  I  would  not.  I  did  not  think  it  was 
right. 

''Oneo  old  J.  N.  and  my  grandfather  hunted  in  tho 
woo»ls.  Jt  was  near  Katalnlin,  the  (heat  Mountain.' 
And  they  wanted  eveiything.  1  hey  had  got  out  of 
everything.  One  night  old  \.  said,  '  1  can  bear  this 
no  longvi*.  Would  you  like  a  nice  pipe  of  tobaec(»? 
\Ve  have  had  nothing  but  meat  for  four  weeks.'  So 
he  went  away  for  a  short  tiuK^ ;  i)erha])s  it  was  an  hour. 
He  leturned  with  a  box.  There  was  in  it  three  pojuids 
of  tobaceo  ;  there  was  cheese,  rice,  and  sugar  ;  there 
was  fifty  pounds  of  provision  in  all." 

This  famous  intt-oiiWn  was  long  a  ])oi)ular  gov- 
ernor of  the  Passamaxpioddies.  1  have  a  curious  old 
brass  candlestick,  said  to  be  one  Inuidred  and  fifty 
years  old,  which  he  owned  all  his  life.  The  following 
remarkable  reminiscences  of  this  very  clever  old  saga- 
more were  given  to  me  by  Marie  Sakis,  a  Penobscot  : 

"The  old  governor  was  a  great  mtcoidin.  Ho 
had  got  it  among  the  Chipi)ewa8.     He  said  that  it 

^  Kataluliii,  like  the  Iiitorvalo  near  North  Conwav,  is  liaiiiited 
and  enchanted  jifronnd,  ahonndiiiij  'v\  fairies  and  other  niarvelons 
l)eings.  But  there  is  not  a  mile  square  of  New  Enghind  wliich 
Las  not  its  legends. 


346      THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

would  conic  to  i)as.s  that  ho  would  die  before  the 
next  snow-stonn.  No,  he  <lid  not  care  himself,  but  my 
husl)au(rs  mother  did,  vvlien  she  heard  this,  and  she 
cri(3d.  Then  he  said,  '  Well,  I  will  try  to  live,  or  else 
die  in  a  month  ;  but  it  will  be  a  hard  fight.'  So  he 
made;  him  a  bow,  and  strung-  it  witli  his  wife's  hair  ;  ^ 
and  having  done  this,  he  shot  an  arrow  tlirougli  the 
smoke-hole  of  his  wigwam.- 

"  All  this  was  at  Nessaik,  near  Eastpoi't.  Tlien  he 
said  to  his  wife,  '  Talce  one  of  your  leggins  and  ])ut  it 
on  my  head.'  She  did  so.  Then  he  took  medicine. 
A  rainbow  ai)peared  in  the  sky,  and  a  great  horso-lly 
came  out  of  liis  mouth,  and  then  a  largo  grassho})i)er. 
lie  cried  to  his  wife,  'Do  not  kill  it!'  And  then 
came  a  stone  spear-head.'^ 

"  '  Now,'  said  the  governor,  '  this  is  all  riglit  so  far, 
but  the  great  struggle  is  yet  to  come.  It  is  a  irce- 
V'lUnu'kq  who  has  done  this.'  (You  know  what  that 
is :  the  Passamaquoddies  call  it  wecvnhnckq'.  It  is 
a  worm  an  inch  long,  which  can  make  itself  into  a 
horrid  monster  as  large  as  a  deer ;  yes,  and  much 
larger.  It  is  intconlin  ;  yes,  it  is  a  great  magician.) 
'  I  am  noinir  to  fij>ht  it.     You  must  come  with  a  small 

^  In  a  Chippewa  Icgond  a  boy  confers  magic  power  on  a  bow 
by  stringing  it  with  his  sisti'r's  hair. 

2  This  is  also  mentioned  in  a  legend  where  it  is  said  that  every 
arrow  killed  a  snpernatnral  enemy. 

8  This  is  all  in  detail  perfectly  Sliamanic.  The  smell  of  the 
fresh  fish  after  such  a  fight  is  the  same  in  an  Eskimo  legend. 
The  horse-fly  {gan)  is  Lapp. 


TALES  OF  MAGIC.  347 

stick  to  hit  it  once,  and  only  a  mere  tap.'  ^  But  she 
would  not  go.  So  ho  wont  and  fouj^ht  with  the  \Vee- 
willniekq'.  llo  killed  it.  It  was  a  fii^htfid  battle. 
When  he  returned  ho  smelt  like  fresh  fish.  I  lis  wife 
bade  liim  go  and  wash  himself;  but  let  him  bathe  as 
much  as  he  could,  the  smell  remained  for  days.  The 
pond  where  ho  fought  has  been  muddy  and  foul  ever 
since. 

"The  governor  could  wiili  a  gindet  bore  a  hole  in» 
any  tree  in  the  woods,  and  draw  from  it  as  he  i)leased 
any  kind  of  wine  or  other  liipior.  Once  he  was  far  iu 
the  forest  with  some  white  gentlemen ;  he  wished  to 
entertain  them.  lie  did  this,  to  their  astonishment. 
He  produced  tobacco  in  a  n\iraculous  manner  when  it 
was  wanted.  Then,  returning  to  Eastjjort,  he  went  to 
Mr.  Pearce,  who  kept  a  store,  and  showed  him  that  a 
certain  amount  of  wine  had  disapi)eared  from  his  bar- 
rels, and  paid  him  for  it.  lie  never  drank  wine  or 
spirits  himself. 

"  He  once  went  hunting.  lie  took  his  wife  with 
Lim  ;  she  was  enceinte.  It  was  in  midwinter.  She 
had  a  great  yearning  for  green  corn.  He  put  a  dish 
on  the  ground,  and  there  fell  from  above  ears  of  fresh- 
boiled  green  corn  into  it.  '  There,'  said  he,  '  as  I 
promised,  you  have  it.' 

"  She  had  a  silver  cross  and  beads.     One  day  she 

lost  it,  and  grieved  very  much.     He  said,  '  Put  that 

wooden  dish  upside  down,  near  the  fire.'    It  was  done, 

and  when  she  turned  it  up  the  cross  was  under  the 

1  In  the  legend  of  Pai'tridge,  a  mere  tap  stuns  the  water-fairy. 


348      THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

dish.  And  ho  said  the  Kctuwks,  or  Spirits,  had 
brought  it." 

The  following  legend,  told  me  hy  Toniah  Jose])lis, 
sets  forth  another  manner  by  \vhic;h  vrCtcoului  may  be 
acquired. 

"  There  were  two  Indian  f Jimilies  camped  away  at 
some  distance  from  the  main  village.  In  one  lived  a 
young  man,  and  every  night  he  would  go  to  the  other 
wigwams  to  see  soiuc  girls.  His  mother  warnc<l  hini 
that  he  would  come  to  harm,  for  there  was  danger 
abroad,  but  he  never  minded  her. 

"Now,  one  night  at  the  end  of  winter,  when  the 
ground  was  bare  of  snow,  as  he  was  walking  along  ho 
heard  something  come  after.  It  had  a  very  heavy, 
steady  tramp.  He  stopped,  and  saw  a  long  figure, 
white,  but  without  arms  or  legs.  It  looked  like  a 
corpse  rolled  up.  lie  was  horribly  frightened,  but 
when  it  attaelced  him  he  grew  angry.  The  objecit, 
though  it  had  no  arms,  fouglit  madly.  It  twined 
round  him  ;  it  struck  itself  against  hhn,  and  thrashed 
itself,  bending  like  a  fish  all  about.  And  he,  too, 
fouaht  as  if  he  was  crazv.  He  w  as  one  of  those  whoso 
blood  and  covu-age  go  up,  but  never  down;  he  could 
die,  bvit  never  give  in  till  dead.  Before  daylight  the 
Ghost  suggested  a  rest,  or  peace  ;  the  Indian  would 
not  hear  of  it,  but  fought  on.  The  Ghost  began  to 
imi)lore  mercy,  but  the  youth  just  then  saw  in  the 
north  Kival  lo  kesso,  the  break  of  day.  Then  he 
knew  that  if  he  could  but  endure  the  biittle  a  little 
longer  he  should  indeed  get  a  great  victory. 


TALES  OF  MAGIC.  849 

"Then  tlio  Gliost  implored  liim,  saying, '  Let  me  go, 
and  whatever  yon  may  want  yon  shall  get,  and  good 
luek  all  your  lift'.'  Yet  for  all  this  he  would  not 
yield,  for  he  knew  that  by  eonijuering  lie  would  win 
all  the  S])irit  had  to  give.  And  as  the  fu-st  sun-ray 
shone  on  him  he  beeame  msensible,  and  wlien  ho 
awoke  it  was  as  from  a  sleep.  l>ut  by  his  .side  lay  a 
large,  old,  decayed  log,  covered  with  moss.  lie  re- 
mend)ered  that  during  the  fiiiht  he  had  seemed  oneo 
to  plunge  his  fist,  by  a  violent  blow,  completely  into 
the  enemy  up  to  his  elbow,  and  there  was  a  hole  in  it 
corresponding  to  this  wound.  lie  had  torn  away  the 
other's  scalp -loek,  stripping  the  skin  down  to  the 
waist ;  he  found  a  long,  hairy-looking  pi(jce  of  moss 
ripped  from  the  end  of  the  log  to  the  middle.  Aiul 
all  about  lay  pieces  of  moss  and  locks  of  his  own  hair, 
testifying  to  the  fury  of  the  figlit. 

"  lie  was  terribly  bruised  and  torn,  but  tluit  lie  did 
not  heed,  for  now  he  was  another  man,  and  a  terrible 
one.  His  mother  SJiid,  '  I  warned  you  of  danger  : ' 
but  he  had  concpiered  the  danger.  lie  liad  all  tlio 
streng-th  of  five  strong  men,  and  all  tlio  might  and 
magic  of  tlie  Spirit;  yes,  the  Si)lrit  itself  was  now  in 
him.  Aftci'  this  he  could  do  anything,  and  iind  game 
where  no  one  else  could.  To  cou(pier  a  ghost  gives 
power." 

To  conquer  the  dead,  or  to  fight  terrible  spirits,  to 
thereby  absorb  their  ])ower,  and  finally  to  keep  them 
in  a  struggle  until  the  day  shines  on  them,  is  both 
Norse  and  Celtic,  if  not,   indeed,   world-wide.      But 


3/30  THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

the  prim  8i)irit  of  this  narrative  h  Norse  ;  it  is  tliat 
of  the  hero  wresting  from  a  cori)se's  hold  the  sword 
of  victory. 

"  Farewell,  daiiyliti!!'  I 

Fleet  give  1  ihcc, 

Five  men's  Italic, 

If  thou  it  helieve." 

But  the  great  element  or  chief  cause  of  magic 
power  among  the  Indians  is  that  of  Will.  It  mani- 
fests itself  in  many  forms,  mere  courage  being  one. 
Thus  the  WeewiUmekq^  confers  sui)ernaturr.l  ability 
or  other  favors  only  on  those  who  are  not  afraid  of  it. 
The  demon  Log,  as  we  have  just  seen,  gives  strength 
and  prosperity  to  a  man  for  simply  fighting  like  a 
bull-dog.  Beyond  courage,  pluck  or  bottom  is  with 
these  Indians  as  nearly  allied  to  magic  as  poetry  was 
among  the  Greeks,  or  with  an  Eschenw.  va.  When 
the  true  magician  "  gets  mad,"  and  continues  to  get 
madder  till  the  end,  he  is  invincible.  Allied  to  this 
is  perseverance.  The  Rabbit  is  rewarded  with  skill 
as  an  enchanter  merely  for  continuing  to  try.  Ilis 
very  failures  have  this  in  them,  that  he  keeps  on  res- 
olutely, though  in  a  wrong  road.  No  one  can  fail  to 
be  struck,  in  these  legends  of  the  Northeast  A!gon- 
quins,  how  often  a  boy,  or  adult,  when  asked  if  ho 
can  do  a  difficult  thing,  replies,  "  I  can  try."  All  of 
this  apotheosis  of  i)luck,  jjcrseverance,  and  patience 
is  far  more  developed  among  these  legends  than  in 
those  of  the  Chippewas  or  other  western  and  south- 
ern  tribes,  at   least   so    far   as  I  am   familiar  with 


TALES  OF  MAGIC.  851 

tliem.  It  oxlsts  wherever  there  are  red  Indiana,  hut 
the  Eastern  Algoimuiii  sooius  to  have  th()ii;^ht  it  out 
more  and  made  more  of  it  than  others  have  done. 
Therefore  his  cycle  of  myths,  or  his  Eddu,  oceai)ies 
a  higher  place.  It  is  less  chaotic  ;  it  is  more  con- 
sistent ;  it  is  a  chorus  in  which  every  voice  is  trained 
to  respond  to  or  correspond  with  the  leader.  In  this 
respect  it  has  a  rcinarkahle  rescnihlance  to  the  Scan- 
dinavian myths  and  jjoenis.  In  its  theory  that  magic 
power  may  be  obtained  !)y  ''  penitence,"  —  I  do  not 
mean  here  "repentance,"  —  that  is  by  sdi'-infiieted 
pain,  it  agrees  with  the  Hindoo,  and  in  fact  more  or 
less  with  all  religions.  But  it  is  only,  I  believe,  in  the 
red  Indian  and  Hindoo  creeds  that  it  is  distint;tly  ad- 
mitted that  man  can  attain  the  power  to  do  both  good 
and  evil,  or  whatever  he  pleases,  if  he  will  only  pay 
for  it  by  suffering.  The  doetiine  of  power  through 
penance  is  so  simple  and  obvious  in  its  origin  that  it 
would  long  ])recede  monotheism.  A.  man  exercises 
himself  with  great  exertion  in  liftmg  stones,  as  in  an 
Eskimo  tale,  till  he  is  strong ;  he  i)ractices  shooting 
arrows  and  running  after  them,  as  in  the  story  of  the 
Chief's  Son,  till  he  can  outrun  them.  Then  the  secret 
of  such  marvelous  deeds  is  supposed  to  exist  in  the 
bow,  and  it  becomes  a  fetich. 

A  very  important  part  of  intSoulhi  is  the  materials 
employed.  In  Old  World  magic  these  are  exclusively 
objects  which  startle  or  disgust,  parts  of  the  human 
body,  dead  re})tilcs,  or  things  singular  and  rare. 
Among  the  Indians,   very  conunonplace   articles  are 


352      THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

employed  indifferently  witli  those  of  the  former  kind. 
The  nmyic  consists  not  in  them,  but  in  the  ma;^iiian 
and  his  metiiods.  lie  has  had,  h  t  us  say,  his  dreams, 
or  received,  while  alone  in  the  forest,  his  insj)irations, 
which  have  tolil  him  what  to  do.  He  takes  the  ob- 
jects sug'j^ested,  and  with  them  jjcrforms  his  wonder 
works.  Sometimes  he  tells  others  to  do  the  same  with 
the  same  things,  but  in  this  case  he  is  still  the  motive 
force;  it  is  liis  enchantment.  In  illustration  of  this 
1  j»i ve  the  following  legend  :  — 

Far  in  the  woods  was  an  Indian  town  ;  near  it  lived 
two  old  peo])lo,  who  had  two  beautiful  daughters,  and 
no  son.  The  girls  were  very  shy.  They  seldom  let 
themselves  be  seen.  They  would  not  listen  to  the 
young  men. 

The  chief  of  the  tribe  had  a  fine  son,  a  great 
hunter,  and  skilled  in  mysteries.^  The  young  man 
wanted  one  of  the  girls.  His  father  went  to  their 
parents  and  obtained  their  consent,  but  the  girls  re- 
fused to  be  m.'irried. 

There  lived  in  the  village  a  young  man  who  was 
neither  strong,  handsome,  nor  clever  at  any  kind  of 
work.  Hearing  that  tlie  chief's  son  had  failed  to  get 
one  of  the  shy  or  proud  girls,  he  said  —  but  all  in  jest, 
for  he  had  but  a  poor  opinion  of  himself — that  he 
was  the  right  kind  of  a  man  to  get  them.  "  If  they 
had,  for  example,  only  seen  7/ic,  now,"  he  exclaimed, 

1  In  Passamaquoddy,  N'paowiin:  a  man  learned  in  mysteries, 
a  scliolar.  This  is  my  own  Indian  name.  It  is  apparently  the 
same  with  boo-oin  ;   that  is,  pow-wow  man. 


TALES  OF  MAGIC.  353 

"  tlioy  would  liavo  wishod  to  be  married  at  ouoo  I  " 
Then  they  all  laughed,  and  proposed  that  they  siiould 
go  that  night  ami  try  to  see  the  girls,  and  how  they 
would  reeeive  the  plain  looking  youth. 

So  they  went  (piietly,  about  su])j)er-tiuie,  and  entered 
so  suddenly  that  the  girls  had  not  time  to  hide  behind 
the  curtain,  and  so  were  obliged  to  receive  the  visit- 
ors. After  sujjper  they  engaged  in  playing  J/l/u/- 
UHnIokadjlk.  In  this  game  a  ring  is  hiddiMi  in  the 
ashes  or  sand,  and  each  ])layer,  with  a  ])ointed  stick, 
makes  a  plunge  luitil  tlie  ring  is  hit,  and  brought  out, 
(This  is  Indian  pokct'.  —  T.  1>.) 

So  the  evening  ])asscd,  and  notliiug  was  s:iid  of  mar- 
riage ;  and  at  last  the  guests  went  away,  and  for  some 
time  the  young  man  made  a  jest  of  his  having  gone 
courting.  One  day  he  was  far  and  alone  in  the  woods, 
when  he  met  an  old  woman  of  very  strange  appear- 
ance. She  was  wrinkled  and  bent  with  extreme  age, 
and  her  head  was  braided  up  with  a  very  great  number 
of  sakulobeek,  or  hair-strings,  whicli  hung  down  to  her 
heels.  After  greeting  him  civilly,  she  asked  him  if  he 
was  really  anxious  to  marry  one  of  the  beauties  whom 
he  had  visited.  "  O  JVkigifmcp,  "  (grandmother),  he 
rei)lied,  "  I  do  not  care  about  it."  "Only  if  you  did," 
she  I'cplied,  "  I  can  give  you  the  one  you  want,  if  you 
will  only  say  so." 

Now  the  young  man  saw  that  the  old  woman  was  in 

earnest,  and  he  rejjlied  that  in  fact  he  would  be  very 

glad  to  get  one  of  the  girls,  but  that  no  girl  worth 

having  would  look  at  him.    Then  the  old  dame,  taking 

23 


354  THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

one  of  her  halr-strlngs,  snid,  "  Roll  tliis  up,  and  carry 
it  In  your  pouch  for  a  while; '  and  then  ^o,  and,  catch- 
ing an  o}>i)ortuuity,  toss  the  cord  upon  her  buck.  Hut 
take  care  that  she  does  not  know  that  you  have  done 
this,  and  let  it  be  indeed  a  secret  to  all." 

So  he  took  the  suhdohe^  and,  visiting  the  girls  once 
again,  threw  it  on  one  of  them,  more  hopt^ful  of  success 
this  time.  And  the  cast  succeeded,  though  she  said 
nothing  then.  But  the  next  day,  alone  in  the  woods, 
he  met  her,  for  she  had  followed  him.  And  she  said, 
"  Ta  u  It  allien  1 ''"'  "  Where  are  you  going?"  "  1  am 
going  hunting,"  he  replied.  ''  P>ut,  if  you  have  not 
lost  your  way,  what  are  you  doing  here  ?  "  "  I  am 
not  lost  in  the  woods,"  she  ro})lied,  but  said  no  more. 
Then  he,  seeing  how  it  was,  said,  "  It  would  be  better, 
though,  if  I  returned  with  you  to  your  parents,  and 
told  them  that  I  found  you  lost,  and  showed  you  the 
way  home."  And  having  done  this,  the  girl's  father, 
noting  that  she  liked  the  young  man,  asked  him  if  he 
wished  to  marry  her  ;  and  as  both  were  \villing,  and 
something  more,  the  wedding  feast  was  soon  ready, 
the  friends  invited,  and  the  cou])le  settled  down. 

Some  days  after,  the  husband,  seeing  his  wife  wear- 
ing the  magic  hair-string,  asked  her,  "  Where  did  you 

^  One  of  the  infallible  ancient  methods  to  make  anything 
into  a  fetich,  or  anuilct,  is  to  carry  it  a  \o\v^  time  about  the  per- 
son. Familiarity,  as  Heine  observes  (Rfisrlbildcr),  gives  a  silent 
life,  or  apparent  sympatliy,  to  even  old  clothes.  Thus  domestic 
Avcll-knowu  objects  become  fairies,  and  thus  they  talk  to  cliil- 
dreu. 


TAU'JS  OF  MAGIC.  855 

p^ct  that  pretty  suhilohc  ? "  "  I  found  it,"  she  rc- 
])lit'(l,  "in  my  ^ntiihoonk"  (iisiuil  sitting;  plai'i-  in  tho 
wi;,'\v:uu).  Tills  ciuisuil  tiic  younj;  man  to  lutlcct  how 
kindly  he  had  lu^on  treated  by  tho  ohl  fairy  or  witch, 
and  how  easily  lie,  without  any  merit,  had  won  his  wife, 
and  then  to  think  of  the  deservin;^"  youn<j  ehief's  son 
who  had  fiiihul.  So,  takinj^  him  into  the  woods,  they 
found  tla-  old  woman,  who,  kind  as  ever,  did  for  tho 
chief's  son  what  she  had  already  done  for  liis  friend, 
and  gave  him  also  a  magic  hair-string.  And  using  it 
in  the  same  way  ho  in  like  manner  won  tho  other  sis- 
ter ;  and  it  was  indeed  well,  for  she  was  the  one  whom 
he  wanted  most.  And  the  two  men  whoso  wives  wore 
sisters  (^wcchoosJUi'^,  were  on  the  best  of  terms  and 
inueh  together. 

Now  the  young  chief  reflcicted  that  his  brother-in- 
law  had  been  very  kind  to  him,  for  little  cause,  and 
thought  how  he  could  re|^ay  him.  So  ho  asked  hini 
one  duy  if  he  would  like  to  be  a  swift  runner.  "  Truly 
I  would,"  replied  the  other.  "•  Then  go  and  gather 
some  feathers,  and  let  them  blow  when  the  wind  is 
hitrh,  and  chase  them.  You  will  soon  be  able  to  out- 
strip  the  wind,  and  when  the  art  comes  it  will  never 
dei)art  from  you."  Then  ho  did  this,  and  became  so 
swift  that  no  man  or  beast  could  escape  him. 

Yet  again  the  chief's  son  said,  "  Woukl  you  like 
to  become  strong  and  very  active?"  And  as  he  of 
course  said  "  Yes,"  the  friend  rei)lied,  "  Dress  yourself 
in  the  worst  and  raggedest  garments,  and  attack  the 
fii'st  man  you  find,   lie  will  catch  you  by  the  clothes  ; 


866  THE  ALGOSQUIN  LIKIENDti. 

but  do  you  slip  out  of  tluMU  iiud  run."  Tliis  he  did  ; 
the  first  man  whom  lie  nu't  was  ji  luuiitie,  who  {j:hully 
j;r:i[)i)k'd  for  a  fight.  So  he  slipiu'd  out  of  tho  (dothes 
and  ran  ;  but  tho  madman  thou;;lit  tho  ai>i)ari'l  made 
the  man,  and  beat  it  a  lon;^  time,  and  left  it  for  (lead. 
But  after  ho  ha*l  done  this  with  many  men  ho  indeed 
became  strong  and  active. 

Tlien  the  chief's  son  said,  "  I  will  teach  you  (juick- 
nes8  of  sight,  so  that  you  may  ])crceive  animals  while 
hunting,  though  other  men  may  not.  Take  a  hand- 
ful of  moose's  hairs  ;  hold  them  finnly  in  a  roll  be- 
tween your  thumb  and  linger ;  hold  them  up  in  a 
high  wind  and  let  them  go.  So  you  will  bo  able  to 
perceive,  in  time,  all  the  moose.  And  to  see  deer,  or 
any  other  animal,  you  nmst  take  their  hair  an»l  treat 
it  in  the  same  way."  So  he  did;  and  by  means  of 
this  magie  became  so  keen  of  sight  that  he  beheld 
every  b(iast. 

Yet  again  tho  chief's  son  said,  "  Would  you  see 
birds  where  no  other  men  can  ?  "  And  he,  assent- 
ing, was  told  to  strip  the  feathery  part  from  a  bird's 
(juills  {r/ic/,-a/>'(((J<'(/(/'),  and,  blowing  it  into  the  air, 
look  carefully  in  the  direction  in  which  it  flew.  And 
having  prjic^ticed  this  also,  lie  became  very  perfect  in 
the  art.^ 

^  The  secret  of  these  spells  is  very  apparent.  But  the  teacher 
voiild  make  tho  j)upil  believe  that  the  sueeessful  result  would 
greatly  depend  on  the  color  and  kind  of  the  fur  or  feathers 
employed.  It  is  curious  to  observe  how,  in  the  over-refinement 
of  "  sport  "  among  gentlemen,  the  idea  that  this  or  that  is  "  good 


TAfJCS  OF  MAGIC,  S')! 

Now,  liavln^'  Icanu'd  all  thrso  things,  lu»  asked  tlio 
('lii»  i'.H  son  how  Im  could  learn  to  ml-o  tlio  fisiios  of  thu 
sea.  And  bein^  told  that  lie  must  collect  all  kinds 
of  fishes'  hones,  an*l  hum  them  and  )iound  them  to 
dust,  hu  did  so  ;  and,  liaNinp;^  hlown  them  up  into  thu 
wind,  he  could  seu  all  manner  of  tish  and  call  tiiem 
to  him. 

This  youn<^  man  went  afar  in  his  thoughts;  for  ro- 
llcctin^'  that  the  whali!S  were  giant-like  in  jiower,  ho 
wondered  what  nii;;ht  he  (h)ne  l>y  magic  with  them. 
And  his  friend  said  that  it  was  true  that  the  whales 
could  give  to  man  imearthly  power  and  exceeding 
h)ng  life.  "  For,"  said  he,  "  they  never  die  till  they 
arc  killed,  and  by  their  aid  one  may  live  on  till  life 
borders  on  hnmortality."  So  burning  a  ])iece  of  whale- 
bone (pnotn/t-dtrifjun^.,  ho  pounded  it  to  powder,  and, 
Ktanding  on  a  rock  that  jutted  out  into  tlu;  sea,  tho 
sorcerer  blew  the  dust  seawards.  And  erelong  ho 
saw  (hirk  spots  far  away,  and  as  they  grew  to  be  inoro 
nuiui'rous  they  became  larger,  and  yet  more  numerous 
anon,  and  for  every  grain  of  dust  which  he  blew  there 
came  a  whale  ;  and  yet  \w  blew  again  seven  times. 
Then  the  whole  school  of  immense  creatures  came  to- 
wards him ;  and  he  that  was  largi'st,  or  the  sagamoro 
of  the  whales,  swimming  close  to  the  man  on  the  rock, 
said,  "  Why  liast  thou  called  me  ?  "  And  he  replied, 
"  Make  me  strong." 

form  "  and  "  the  correct  Ihinn:,"  which  must  bo  doiie,  has  had  tho 
effoot  of  establishiiifj^  iimch  which  is  more  fetich.  A  fox  in  Kiifj- 
hind  and  a  bear  in  Canada  must  be  killed  in  a  certain  way  by 
men  of  caste. 


3r)8  TUE  AinONQUIN  LECKNnS. 

And  tlio  Wlialo  nnsworrd,  "  It  is  well.  l*ut  tliy 
li.'ind  ill  my  iiioiitli  !  "  And,  d()in<;'  this,  li(>  found  and 
took  out  a  ;;()lden  key.'  *'  KtM'p  that,"  said  thu  Wliah;. 
*'  Wliiio  you  liavo  it  you  will  Imj  Kafo  aj^ainst  man, 
beast,  or  illness.  The  fo(?  shall  not  harm  you  ;  the 
spirits  which  haunt  tlie  wildiirness  sliall  pass  you  l»y ; 
hunger  and  j)ain  shall  not  know  you  ;  death  shall  not 
be  in  y«)ur  road." 

So  the  younj:^  man  thanked  the  fi;reat  magielan,  and 
went  home  ;  and  as  it  iiad  been  j)romised  it  eame  to 
pass.  All  was  ever  wi'll  witii  him  ;  trouble  and  tiial 
were  with  him  no  more.  Those  who  were  in  his  viL 
la^e  never  knew  hunger;  the  wild  ••amc  abounded, 
and  came  to  them  when  ealled  ;  no  enemy  attacked 
them  ;  the  sun  and  moon  smiled  on  them  ;  they  sang 
tlio  songs  of  the  olden  time,  and  i)layed  the  flute  in 
peace. 

In  time  the  old  chief  dnnv  near  the  end  of  his  life, 
and  his  son  asked  the  friend  if  his  fatlier's  days  coidd 
not  be  ])rolonged.  But  the  magician  thought  it  best 
to  let  him  ])ass  in  jjcace ;  and  he  did  so.  Then  the 
young  chief  offered  his  jdacc  and  ])ower  to  his  brother- 
in-law  QuH'choosul) ;  but  he  refused  it,  and  passed  his 
life  in  aiding  his  friend  in  every  way  by  his  power 
and  wisdom.     Koi^^Gdhdvoksit  (here  the  story  ends). 

This  legend  is  little  more  than  an  enumeration  of 
tbe  recipes  popularly  employed  to  obtain  certain  pow- 

^  This  is  a  inauifL'stly  modern  addition.  There  is  every  indi- 
cation that  the  story  itself  is  ancient,  probably  Eskimo. 


TALKS  OF  MA  (7 1  a  369 

crs.  It  may  bo  olnrrvjMl  tlwit  it  U  liiuit(>4l  to  all  lint 
a  I'rai  Iiuliaii  r«M|nin's.  It  in  v«'ry  ditVtin'iit  from  what 
a  wliito  man  or  an  Asiatu'  sava^'ti  wouhl  iiavt!  waiitt'tl; 
and  thci'o  is  jn.st  onoii<^li  tnilli  ami  common  smsu  iu 
tlio  mctliods  irconuncmlcd  to  mako  the  wiiolo  [>laiisi- 
l)lo.  The  i'ea<lui'  will  <tl»st«i'vo  that  tin*  ma<;i(!  hair- 
strin;^  and  locks  of  h:iir  jday  the  same  im|M»rtant  jiart 
in  niti'iniHn  that  they  did  in  OKI  \\'«>rhl  ma^^ic.  This 
is  hardly  one  of  the  coincidences  which  can  be  attiil>- 
utcd  to  spontaneons  ilcvelopment  from  simihir  causes. 
It  may  bo  snch,  but  there  may  bo  also  an  Eskimo  sidc- 
gato  throuii^h  which  it  entered  from  tho  other  sidt'. 

Anotiier  maj;ie  means  was  tho  influencing  hi^h  and 
mysterious  powers.  Of  this  tho  following  is  an  ad- 
mirable illustration :  — 

Tuiiuikoontaoo,  or  the  Broken  iViiuj. 
(Micnme.) 

An  Indian  family  lived  on  tlio  Hea-shoro.  They 
had  two  sons;  tho  eldest  of  these  was  mari'ied,  and 
h:ul  many  small  chihlren.  They  lived  by  fishing; 
they  chiefly  (taught  eels. 

It  came  to  pass  that  tho  weather  was  so  stormy  that 
they  could  not  flsh.  Tho  wind  blew  terribly  night  and 
day ;  the  waves  were  like  dancing  hills.  1  lunger  made 
them  fierce.  One  day  the  father  told  his  boys  to  walk 
along  tho  shore  and  see  if  no  fish  had  been  cast  on  the 
beach. 

A  young  man  wiait ;  he  went  far  along  ;  and  a.s 
he  went  the  wind  was  ever  worse ;  it  blew  so  ticrcely 


3C0  THE  ALC.ONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

that  ho  could  hardly  stand.  It  Keemed  to  cojne  from 
a  point  of  land,  lie  resolved  to  pass  it,  and  when 
there  he  saw  the  ''uuse  of  the  tempest.  Upon  a 
kwattopskeak^  —  a  high  and  rocky  ledge,  a  bold  clill:', 
but  surrounded  by  the  water  —  sat  the  AV'ind-Bird, 
or  storm-sagamore  himself,  flapping-  his  wings,  and 
therel)y  raising  all  the  wind. 

Then  the  young  man,  who  was  brave  and  wise,  re- 
solved to  outwit  the  wind-god.  And  api)roaching 
him  and  addressing  him  as  JSlkshumich^  "  My  grand- 
father," ho  in(pured,  "  arc  you  cold  !  "  And  ho 
answered,  "Nay;"  but  the  young  man  insisted  that 
he  nmst  be  suffering,  and  offered  to  carry  him  on  his 
back  to  the  main-land.^  And  the  offer  being  accepted, 
ho  carried  the  mighty  bird  from  one  wecxly,  slij)])cry 
rock  to  another,  up  and  down,  jumi)ing  anon,  and 
wading  through  the  pools.  But  at  the  last  rock  he, 
with  full  intention,  stumbled  and  fell  as  if  by  accident, 
yet  managed  it  so  well  as  to  break  one  of  the  wings  of 
the  eagle,  as  he  indeed  meant  to  do.  Yet  he  made 
great  show  of  being  very  sorry,  and,  having  set  the 
wing,  bade  the  bird  keep  quiet,  and  not  move  his 
wings  for  many  days  ;  not  till  the  wound  was  healed 
should  he  stir  them.  "  Sit  still,  JSilshamich^^^  he 
said,  "  and  I  will  bring  you  food ;  I  will  be  attentive ; 
you  shall  want  nothing."  And  the  god  sat  still: 
there  was  a  calm  on  the  water;  no  leaves  moved  in 
the  forest ;  there  was  no  wind  in  all  the  world. 

^  It  would  ajujeai'  that  wliiki  tlio  bird  flapped  his  wings  ho  did 
not  lly.    1  believe  this  wJis  the  same  with  the  Korse  Ilrosvclgar. 


TALES  OF  MAGIC,  361 

The  yoimj^  man  went  homo ;  there  was  not  a  hreczo, 
the  eauoo  went  smoothly  over  the  sea,  the  eels  could 
bo  seen  in  tlie  (lei)ths,  the  Indians  caught  fish  by 
thousands ;  never  before  had  they  caught  so  many. 
And  the  sagamore  of  the  birds  sat  still ;  the  \\'ind- 
Bird  waited  to  got  well ;  tlie  young  man  fed  him  every 
day. 

There  can  be  too  much  of  what  is  good  ;  good  turns 
to  evil,  sweet  to  sour.  After  many  days  of  quiet  calm 
the  sea  was  covered  with  Oyokjx'gcal:^  a  scum  which 
is  caused  by  sickness  among  the  fish,  and  wliich  is 
thrown  off  by  them,  for  they  suffer  in  still  water. 
Then  the  fisherman  can  no  longer  look  down  into  the 
sea  ;   then  he  cannot  use  the  spear. 

Then  the  young  man,  examining  the  wing  of  the 
storm-bird,  said,  "Grandfather,  it  is  much  better; 
move  it  but  a  little  now,  that  I  may  see  !  "  So  ho 
moved  it ;  he  gave  a  flap,  and  lo !  a  slight  rijiplo  passed 
over  the  surface  of  the  sleeping  sea.  And  striking 
lightly  with  his  wings,  again  there  came  a  breeze,  and 
the  OgoJqyegcah.,  or  the  scum,  was  blo^^^I  away,  and 
the  Indians  fished  again,  and  all  was  well. 

So  they  had  the  AVind-Bird  for  a  friend,  and  the  sea 
was  smooth  or  stormy  as  they  willed.  But  these  Indians 
wished  for  more  than  they  could  manage.  They  grew 
tired  of  catching  small  fish  ;  they  wanted  whales.  "  Let 
us  go  and  catch  the  Bootu[) !  "  said  tlie  elder  brother. 
"  How  will  you  take  him  ?  "  asked  the  younger.  "  I  will 
entice  him  with  the  pccpooywohan^^^  said  the  elder, 
"  with  my  pipe."     So  he  sat  by  the  sea ;  he  played  on 


362  THE  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

the  i)ipe ;  ho  played,  but  no  whiile  came.  So  they 
went  ]>ack  to  their  small  lishery. 

This  is  manifestly  t\\v  bcj^iuniug  and  end  of  a  very 
ancient  Indian  mythical  tale.  The  ^licmacs  have 
tacked  on  to  it  a  ridiculous  fragment  of  an  indifferent 
French  nursery  tale,  without  an  end  and  without  any 
connection  with  the  Indian  beginning.  The  tradition 
is  probably  entirely  Eskimo.  Among  the  Grecidanders 
there  is  a  caste  of  whale-fishers,  separate  and  apart, 
and  this  story,  in  its  second  stage,  was  ai)plied  to  teach, 
iVe  sutor  ulti'd  crcpUhim,  —  that  all  should  stick  to 
their  trades,  and  that  though  a  sorcerer  might  rule 
the  winds  it  did  not  follow  that  he  coiUd  win  the 
whales. 

I  have  spoken  before  of  the  curious  identity  of  the 
Indian  storm-king,  or  Wind-l)ird,  with  that  of  the 
Norse  Ilrosvelgar.  When  among  the  Chippewas, 
west  of  Lake  Superior,  I  met  with  a  white  man  who 
had  received  the  name  of  Thunder -Bird  from  the 
Indians  still  further  west. 

The  magicians  of  all  countries,  be  they  of  Africa, 
Asia,  or  North  America,  are  invariably  represented 
by  travelers  as  holding  their  flock  in  subjection,  and 
never  being  doubted  as  to  power  or  skill.  But  there 
are  skeptics  or  Agnostics  among  the  men  of  the  woods 
as  well  as  among  those  of  civilized  cities.  There  are 
shrewd  fellows  who  cannot  only  detect  impostors,  but 
turn  their  tricks  to  their  own  advantage.  An  amus- 
ing illustration  of  this  is  given  in  the  following  story  : 


TALES  OF  MAGIC.  363 

Fish-Hnwh  (ind  Scapegrace} 
(Micmac.) 

Two  men  met  uiul  tulknl :  one  was  Fish-IIawk,  the 
other  was  Scapegrace.  Now  the  Fish-IIawk  can  fly 
higlier  than  any  other  ocean  bh-d,  and  he  is  jjroud 
and  particular  as  to  his  food ;  he  is  only  beaten  by  the 
eagle.  When  he  dives  and  takes  a  fish  the  eaglo 
pursues  him  ;  he  lets  it  drop  ;  the  great  sagamore  of 
the  birds  catches  it ;  but  to  less  than  the  chief  ho 
yields  nothing.  Ihit  the  Scapegrace  will  eat  any- 
thing ;  he  is  heavy  in  flying  ;  he  is  slow  and  of  low 
degree. 

So  when  the  Scai)egrace  proposed  to  the  Fish- 
IIawk  that  they  should  become  i)artners  the  proud 
bird  was  angry  in  his  heart,  but  said  notliing,  as  ho 
was  crafty,  and  as  it  occurred  to  him  that  he  coidd 
punish  the  other  ;  and  this  he  was  the  more  willing 
to  do  because  the  Scapegrace  actually  projjosed  to  fly 
a  race  with  him!  So  he  said,  "Let  us  go  together 
to  a  certain  Indian  village."  And  they  went  oif  to- 
gether. 

The  Fish-IIawk  arrived  there  far  l^efore  the  other. 
And  on  arriving  he  said,  "  Beware  of  him  who  will 
come  after  me.  You  will  know  him  by  these  signs : 
he  is  ugly  and  heavy  ;  he  will  bring  with  him  liis  own 
food.  It  is  coarse  and  comnum :  in  fact  it  is  poison. 
lie  wishes  to  kill  you  ;  he  will  offer  it.  Do  not  eat  of 
it,  or  you  will  die." 

^  Wiskumagwasoo  and  Mahgwis.  The  Mahgwis,  or  "  Scape- 
gra(!i(,"  is  a  kiud  of  sea-gull. 


3G4  THE  AUIONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

Tlion  liavin<^  hww  very  well  outertuinetl  hlinself,  he 
took  his  clci);irtuie.  Sciipcgnico  soon  tii)pt'uro(l,  but 
was  treated  with  great  reserve,  lie  offered  his  food, 
and  tlie  people  i)retended  to  eat  it,  but  took  good  care 
to  quietly  throw  it  away.  Then  lie  told  the  eliief  that 
he  was  seeking  a  wife,  and  asked  if  there  were  girls 
to  marry  hi  the  town.  To  which  the  chief  rejilied, 
*'  Yes,  there  is  a  mother  with  several  daughters,  of  the 
AmalchoogweaJC  or  liaccoon  tribe." 

He  went  to  see  the  girls.  A  bad  name  had  gone 
before  him.  One  of  them  stood  before  the  lodge.  She 
saw  him,  and  cried,  "  J/«/?r/?r/.s  wcchooveet !  "  "  Scape- 
grace is  coming !  "  They  received  him  as  if  he  had 
been  Sickness.  He  was  welcomed  like  filth  on  fine 
ch)thes.  They  cried  out,  ^^Clumnwye  !"  ''  Go  home!" 
lie  asked  the  mother  if  she  had  daughters.  She  an- 
swered, '*  Yes."  lie  asked  her  if  she  would  give  him 
one.     She  rei)lied,  "•  I  will  not."     So  he  went  his  way. 

Now  when  he  liad  gone  Fish-IIawk  came  again,  and 
asked  if  Scapegrace  had  been  there.  lie  incpiired 
if  all  had  passed  as  he  predicted.  They  said  it  had. 
Then  it  occurred  to  him  to  pass  himself  off  for  a  great 
prophet,  a  wise  magician,  well  knowing  that  he  could 
make  much  of  it.  So  he  said,  "  It  is  well.  Hememljer 
that  you  would  have  all  died  but  for  my  foresight. 
That  wizard  would  have  poisoned  you  all.  But  have 
no  fear.     In  future  I  will  watch  over  you." 

Then  he  said  to  a  man  of  the  people  that  if  at  any 
time  he  should  see  a  large  bird  flying  over  the  village 
it  would  be  an  omen  of  great  coming  danger.  "Then," 


TALES  OF  MAGIC.  365 

he  said,  "  tliink  of  me ;  call  on  me,  and  I  will  come." 
So  he  (lei)aitc'd. 

Tiio  man  thought  it  all  over  for  a  lonj,^  time.  lie 
was  .shiewd  and  wise.  -lie  foretold  the  comin^^  of 
Seai)eorace,"  ho  refleeted.  '^  Xow  he  i)retends  to  be  a 
very  great  sorcerer.     A\'e  shall  see  !  " 

Sure  enou,i;h,  in  a  few  days  he  saw  a  hird  Hying 
on  high.  -That,"  said  he,  "nmst  l)e  the  WiH-kuma' 
ffwuHoo:'  He  called  him,  and  he  came.  -  You  spoke," 
be  said,  "of  danger  to  our  town.     ^Miat  is  it  ?  " 

"  There  is  great  danger.  In  a  few  days  your  town 
wdl  be  attacked  by  a  Ko(dcwes.^  Unless  you  save 
yourselves  you  will  all  be  devoured." 

"  What  shall  we  do  to  be  saved  ?  "  asked  the  man. 
"  When  will  he  come  ?  " 

"In  seven  days,"  replied  tlie  Fish-IIawk.  "  Before 
that  time  you  must  take  to  your  canoes  and  flee  afar. 
You  may  get  beyond  his  reach,  but  you  cannot  before 
that  time  get  beyond  the  horrible  roar  of  his  voice. 
And  all  who  hear  it  will  drop  dead." 

"  llow  can  we  escape  this  second  danger  ?  "  asked 
the  man. 

"  You  must  all  close  your  ears,  so  that  you  can  hear 
nothing.     AVhen  the  time  is  over  ycm  may  return." 

The  man's  name  was  Oscoon.2  He  led  the  people 
away.  He  closed  their  cars ;  he  diil  not  close  his  owti. 
Once  he  heard  a  far-away  whoop.     It  was  not  very 

1  In  rassamaciuoddy  Kewahqu',  a  camilbal  giaut,  who  is  also  a 
sorcerer. 

^  Oscooii  (M.)  :  the  Liver. 


30G  Tin:   ALdONQUIN  LECIENDS. 

tei'i'il)lc.  But  lie  said  noiliing.  After  a  iiiuo,  tho 
scouts  wlu)  wc'io  scut  out  iituruod.  Tln'y  rcpoitiid 
that  tho  Kookwcrt  h:ul  <h'parte(l.  I'licy  luul  not  oveu 
Hi'cu  hlui.      It  was  a  i;roat  esi*aj)o. 

The  i)e()j)lo  thought  much  of  Oscoon.  Tlicy  niado 
hiui  tlicir  cliicf.  In  a  few  days  the  Fish-Ilawk  re- 
turned. 1  le  spoke  to  Oscoon  :  "  Did  the  i^iant  conic?  " 
"•He  did."  '' Vou  tjscaped  ?  "  'Vl>y  folh)\ving  your 
advice,  wo  did."  "".Vnd  in  wliich  direction  did  l»o 
go?"  ^  '"'•  Surely  you,  wlio  know  so  nuich  about  hiui, 
nnist  know  tliat  better  than  wo  (h)."  Then  the;  Fisli- 
Ilawk  saw  that  he  was  found  out.  lie  Hew  away,  and 
never  returned  to  tlie  town  to  play  tho  pro[)lict. 

llo  who  would  cheat  must  watch  his  words  well. 

As  in  the  preceding  tradition,  there  has  been  tacked 
to  tliis  a  fragment  of  a  very  })oor  Frenc^h  talc;  about  a 
king,  a  great  city,  a  royal  carriage,  and  tlio  forest  of 
wild  beasts,  borrowed  from  so  many  old  Euro])ean  ro- 
mances. But  what  is  here  given  is  apparently  really 
Indian,  and  it  shows  uitli  spirit  and  humor  how  men 
tricked  one  another,  and  rose  in  life  l)y  tricker}^  in  tlio 
days  of  old. 

There  arc  naturally  contradictory  opinions  on  such 

^  IIoiv  tho  Fisli-IIawk  iimdvortontly  betrays  himself.  Tn  the 
Eihhx,  Loki  I'hans^cs  himself  i:ito  a  falcon  and  flies  to  .lotuiiheim 
to  make  misehief,  as  usual.  Odin  also  cliaiio^es  himself  to  a  hawk 
or  eagle  when  he  is  chased  by  the  pliant  Suttunn^.  Tliere  is  a 
strong  Norse  color  to  all  this  tale.  The  Fish-Hawk  is  very  Luki- 
like  and  tricky. 


TALES   OF  MACIC.  307 

a  snhjoot  aa  to  wliat  coiistitntcs  tlio  iiior.'ility  <^f  iiiai^ic. 
Tlio  olil  SlmiMiin  or  MaiiiLoii  i('L;ai(li'<l  w  itchciat't  ;i^ 
wi»'kt;(l.  The  Uoiiiaii  Catliolic  has  taiiglit  the  Indian 
that  all  sorcci'ios  and  spells  except  his  own  are  of  the 
ilevil.  Ileneu  it  eanic!  ihat  I  ^"ot  from  two  Passaina- 
qiioddy  Indians,  next-door  neighbors,  the  followin;^ 
()j)inl(»ns  :  — 

Tonutli.  —  "I'lieri!  was  once  a  man  who  hated  an- 
other.    So  he  j)rayt'd  until  hu  became  a  snake,""  .te. 

Ahofher  hid'HUi.  —  "  If  a  man  wanted  to  be  ni'lr- 
oid'ni  he  must  go  without  food,  or  slee^),  or  saylni;'  his 
prayers,  for  seven  days.  Yes,  that  certainly,  lie  nnist 
go  far  into  the  woods.  He  nuist  go  again  when  his 
power  was  used  up." 

The  faith  in  and  fondness  for  magi(!  were  so  great 
among  the  Algon(piins  that  tliert;  is  not  one  even  of 
their  most  serious  histories  into  which  it  has  not  been 
introduced.  The  Passamacpioddies  will  narrate  an  in- 
cident of  their  wars  with  the  Mohawks.  The  first  time 
it  will  all  be  probable  enough  ;  but  hear  it  again,  when 
the  story-teller  has  become  more  trustful,  and  some  of 
the  actors  in  it  or  the  scene  will  be  sure  to  end  like  a 
Christmas  pantomime  in  fairy-land.  With  them  mUe- 
onlln  covered  everything  ;  it  entered  into  every  detail 
of  life.  I  do  not  think  that  it  was  so  deeply  felt 
even  by  the  ancient  l>abyh>nians  or  the  modern  Arabs 
and  Hindoos  as  by  our  red  men.  It  is  no  wonder 
they  prefer  the  Catholic  religion  to  the  Protestant. 

There  is  a  Micmac  legend  which  is  so  magical  and 
mystical,  so  inspired  with  Eskimo  Shamanism,  that  it 


868  TIIK  ALGONQUIN  LEdENDS. 

would  not  be  remarkable  if  it  had  been  originally  a 
saered  son^'.     'J'his  is 

The  Gi<uit  Mafjlelans. 

There  was  once  a  man  and  his  wife  who  lived  by 
the  sea,  far  away  from  other  pe()i)le.  They  had  many 
children,  and  they  were  very  poor.  One  day  this 
coujjle  were  in  their  canoe,  far  from  land.  There 
came  up  a  dense  fog' ;  they  were  quite  lost. 

They  heard  a  noise  as  of  })addlcs  and  voices.  It 
drew  nearer.  They  saw  dindy  a  monstrous  canoe 
filled  with  giants,  who  greeted  the  little  folk  like 
friends.  '"Uch  keen,  tahmee  ivcjeaok ?  "  "My  little 
brother,"  said  the  leader,  "where  are  you  going?" 
"I  am  lost  in  the  fog,"  said  the  poor  Indian,  very 
sadly.  "Ah,  come  with  us  to  our  cam]),"  said  the 
giant,  who  secnned  to  be  a  good  fellow,  if  there  ever 
was  one.  "  Truly,  ye  will  be  well  treated,  my  small 
friends,  for  my  father  is  the  chief ;  so  be  of  good 
cheer  !  "  And  they,  being  much  amazed  at  this  gen- 
tleness, sat  still  in  awe,  while  two  of  the  giants,  each 
putting  a  tip  of  his  paddle  under  their  bark,  lifted  it 
up  and  put  it  into  their  own,  as  if  it  had  been  a  chip. 
And  truly  the  giants  seemed  to  be  as  much  pleased 
with  the  little  folk  as  a  boy  would  be  who  had  found 
a  flying  squirrel.^ 

*  A  stoi'y  like  this  of  giants  in  a  canoe  would  very  naturally 
oiiginate  about  the  Bay  of  Fundy,  where,  in  the  dense  and  fre- 
quent fogs,  all  objects  assume  greatly  exaggerated  apparent  di- 
mensions. One  often  beholds  there,  on  the  shore,  "  men  as  trees 
walking." 


TALES  OF  MAGIC.  8C9 

And  as  tliey  drew  near  the  beach,  lo !  they  behold 
three  wigwams,  liigh  as  mountains,  in  size  according 
to  that  of  the  giants.  And  coming  to  meet  them  was 
the  chief,  who  was  taller  than  th(^  rest. 

"  Ila !  "  he  cried.  "  Son,  what  have  you  there  ? 
Where  did  you  pick  \\\)  that  little  brother  ?  "  "  JSIoo, 
my  father,  1  found  him  lost  in  the  fog."  "Well, 
bring  him  home  to  the  lodge,  my  son  I "  So  the 
giant  took  the  small  canoe  in  the  palm  of  his  hand, 
the  man  an<l  his  wife  sitting  therein,  and  carried  them 
home.  Then  they  were  taken  into  the  wigwam,  and 
the  canoe  was  laid  carefully  hi  the  eaves,  but  within 
easy  reach,  about  a  hundred  and  fifty  yards  from  the 
ground. 

Then  an  abundant  meal  was  set  before  them,  but 
the  benevolent  host,  mindful  of  their  small  size,  did 
not  give  them  more  to  eat  than  they  would  have  needed 
for  about  ten  years  to  come,  ami  informed  them  ui  a 
subdued  whisi)er,  which  could  hardly  have  been  heard 
a  hundred  miles  off,  that  his  name  was  Oscoon.^ 

Now  it  came  to  pass,  a  few  days  after,  that  a  com- 
pany of  these  well-grown  peo})le  went  hunting,  and 
when  they  returned  the  guests  must  needs  ])ity  them 
that  they  had  no  game  in  their  land  which  answered 
to  their  size  ;  for  they  came  in  with  strings  of  such 
small  affairs  as  two  or  three  dozen  caribou  hanging 
in  their  belts,  as  a  Micmae  would  earry  a  string  of 

^  ]^Ir.  Rand  siiE^pfests  that  this  may  indicate  the  dark  coh)r  of 
his  tribe.  Eskimo  Icyeuds  speak  of  people  among  tliem  who 
were  bluek. 

24 


870  Tllh:  ALdONQUIN  LEiiENDS. 

squirrels,  and  Hwln^j^in^  ono  or  two  inooso  in  tlicir 
hands  like  ral)i»its.  Yet,  what  witli  tln'so  and  many 
deer,  bears,  and  boavers,  they  made  np  in  tho  woigiit 
of  their  f;anie  what  it  hicked  in  size,  anil  of  wliat  they 
had  tiiry  wore  gcnerons. 

Now  tiio  j^iants  In-canu"  very  fond  of  tho  small  folk, 
and  wonld  not  for  the  world  that  they  should  in  any 
way  como  to  liarm.  And  it  camo  to  pass  that  ono 
morning  the  ehief  told  tluMn  that  they  were  to  liave  a 
grand  battle,  since  they  expe('te<l  in  three;  (lays  to  bo 
attacked  by  a  (Mienoo.  Therefore  the  Miemao  saw 
that  in  all  things  it  was  even  with  tlu;  <;iants  as  with 
his  own  ])eople  at  home,  they  having  their  troubles 
with  the  wicked,  and  tlu;  cliiofs  their  share  in  beinj^ 
obliged  to  keep  up  their  magie  and  know  all  that  was 
going  on  in  tho  world.  Yea,  for  he  would  be  a  ])oor 
2)oiV'frow  and  a  necromancer  worth  nothing*  who  (iould 
not  foretell  such  a  trifle  as  the  day  and  hour  when  an 
enemy  wonld  be  on  them  I 

But  this  time  the  Sakumow  (M.)?  t>i"  sagamore,  was 
forewarned,  and  bade  his  little  guests  stop  their  cars 
and  bind  np  their  heads,  Jind  roll  tlunnselves  in  many 
folds  of  dressed  skins,  lest  they  should  hear  the  deadly 
war-scream  of  the  Chenoo.  And  with  all  their  caro 
they  hardly  survived  it ;  but  the  second  scream  hurt 
them  less ;  and  after  the  third  the  ehief  came  to  them 
with  a  cheerful  countenance,  and  bade  them  arise  and 
unpack  themselves,  for  the  monster  was  slain,  and 
though  his  four  sons,  with  two  other  giants,  had  been 
sorely  tried,  yet  they  had  conquered. 


TALIJS  OF  MAGIC.  371 

But  tli(^  Horrows  of  tlio  ;^(»«)<1  ;ii'o  nover  !it  an  nid, 
and  HO  it  was  with  tlirsc  honest  j^iants,  \vli<>  wen;  al- 
ways l)einj^'  |u',st('iT«l  witli  sonif  kiiul  of  scurvy  knav»'H 
or  otliL'i'S  who  woiihl  not  luavo  thiin  in  p(.'aco.  For 
anon  tlic.  chief  annonnccd  (hat  this  time  a  KooUwes 
—  a  luii'ly,  heastly  villain,  not  two  points  lujtter  than 
his  cousin  the  C'henoo  —  was  coming  to  play  at  r«»ni;h 
nnnder  with  thcni.  And,  verily,  l)y  tliis  time  tho 
Micmac  l)c;;an  to  helieve,  without  hatin;;'  an  wvv,  on  it, 
that  all  of  these  tall  })eoi>l(;  were  liUe  iho  wolves,  w  ho, 
meeting  with  nol)ody  (ds(?,  bite  one  another.  So  they 
were  bound  and  bundled  up  as  before,  and  put  to  IhmI 
like  dolls.  And  a<;ain  th(>y  heard  the  horrible  shout, 
the  moderate?  shout,  and  the  suialhir  shout,  until  .soocZ 
mootv  )(kI<  toil  lid 'kjooI^  which,  beini;'  interpreted,  meuu- 
cth  that  they  hardly  heard  him  at  all. 

Then  thii  warriors,  returninj^,  gave  pi'oof  that  tlwy 
had  indeed  done  somethinj;' more  than  kick  the  wind, 
for  they  were  eovered  with  blood,  ;ind  their  le<^s  were 
stuck  full  of  larj^c  pines,  with  here  and  there  an  oak 
or  hendock,  f(»r  the  light  had  been  in  a  forest;  so 
that  they  had  been  as  much  troubled  as  men  would  be; 
with  thistles,  nettles,  and  ])ine  s})linters,  which  Is  truly 
often  a  great  trouble.  But  this  was  their  least  truil, 
for,  as  they  told  their  chief,  the  enemy  had  well-nigh 
made  ffaek  Drum's  entertainment  for  them,  and  led 
them  the  devil's  dance,  had  not  one  of  them,  by  good 
luck,  opened  his  eye  for  him  with  a  rock  which  drove 
it  into  his  brain.  And  as  it  was,  the  chief's  youngest 
son  had  been   so  mauled  that,  coming  home,  he  fell 


872  Till':  ALGONQUIN  LEGENDS. 

<lo!ul  just  Iniftn'o  hi.H  futlifr's  door.  Tiuly  this  mij^lit 
]i:ivu  lici'U  (Ic'cined  almost  un  :i(i'i(l*>nt  in  sonio  t'iiiiiilit'S  ; 
l)iitlo!  wiiat  11  good  lliiii;j;  it  is  to  iiavu  un  eiicluuitcr 
in  tlic  lionse,  I'spei'ially  onu  who  iinows  his  Ijiisiness, 
us  did  tho  olil  cliiof,  who,  ^oing  out,  Jiskcd  tlio  younj^ 
inun  wliy  ho  wus  lying  theri'.  To  whiidi  ho  roi>lying 
that  it  wus  booauso  ho  was  dead,  his  fathor  bado  him 
I'iso  und  walk,  which  ho  did  stniight  to  tho  sni>i)or 
tuhlo,  und  uto  nono  tho  loss  for  it. 

^<ow  tho  okl  c'hiof,  thiidving  that  pcihaps  his  dear 
littlo  poojdo  foimd  lifo  dull  und  tlovoidol'  iuoidont  with 
liim,  uskod  thom  it'  thoy  woro  awoary  of  him.  'i  licy, 
with  golden  truth  indued,  unsworod  thut  thoy  had 
novor  boon  so  inorry,  but  thut  thoy  woro  uiLxious  us  to 
thoir  ehiklron  at  liomc.  TTo  answerod  that  thoy  wcro 
indeed  right,  and  that  tho  noxt  moining  they  might 
depart.  So  thoir  eanoo  was  reached  down  for  thom, 
and  packecl  full  of  the  linest  furs  und  best  mout,  wh(;n 
thoy  won*  tokl  to  tch(ih'-dikir\  or  get  in.  Then  u 
small  dog  was  put  in,  und  this  dog  was  solennily 
charged  that  ho  slu/uhl  take  tho  jK'oplo  home,  while 
tho  ])ooplo  woro  told  to  jKiddle  in  tho  direction  in 
which  tlio  dog  should  point.^  And  to  the  IVIiemac;  ho 
said,  "  Seven  years  hence  you  will  bo  romindod  of 
me."     And  then  tokoohoosijih  (off  they  went). 

^  Straiifjn  as  it  may  sccni,  there  is  not  the  least  cxagjrei'ation 
ill  this.  Lieutenant-Cohmcl  Barclay  Keimau  told  me  that  when 
surveyiiifj  in  the  far  North  Pacifie  he  had  an  Eskimo  do<i^  which, 
hi  the  thii'kest  fo<i^,  would  scent  the  land  at  a  great  distance, 
and  continually  point  to  it. 


TAFJCS  OF  MAGIC.  878 

Tho  man  nut  in  the  storn,  his  wife  in  tlio  ])r()W, 
and  the  div^  in  tlu'  iiiitltllc  of  tin*  cunoi!.  The  do*; 
pointed,  tli«t  lndi;in  puddled,  tlu*  wutei'  wuh  uniootli. 
Tliey  Hoon  leiiclied  home;  the  chiidien  witii  joy  ran  to 
nu!et  them;  tlie  do;j;-  us  joyfully  run  to  sou  tlio  eliil- 
dren,  wii;4<j;inj;  his  tail  with  };reut  ;;lee,  just  as  if  ho 
hud  been  like  any  other  do;;-,  and  not  u  fairy.  For, 
having  made  actjiialntanee,  jje  witiiout  delay  turned 
tail  and  trotted  olV  for  home  again,  running  over  tlio 
oeean  sui'fucje  as  if  it  had  been  hard  ice  ;  which  might, 
inde>ed,  have  onet;  astonished  the  good  man  and  his 
wife,  but  they  had  of  lute  days  seen  so  many  wonders 
thut  they  were  pust  marveling. 

Now  this  Indian,  who  had  in  the  past  been  always 
])oor,  seemed  to  have  (piite  re(;overed  from  that  eom- 
jihiint.  AVhcui  he  let  down  his  lines  the  biggest  lish 
bit  ;  all  his  sprats  were  salmon  ;  he  i)iayed  for  gos- 
lings, and  got  geese  ;  moose  were  as  mice  to  him  now  ; 
yea,  he  hud  the  best  in  the  land,  with  all  the  fatness 
thereof.  So  seven  years  passed  away,  and  then,  as 
he  slept,  there  came  unto  liini  divers  dreams,  and  in 
them  ho  v/ent  back  to  the  Land  of  the  (iiants,  and 
saw  all  those  who  had  been  so  kind  to  him.  And  yet 
again  he  dreamed  one  night  that  he  was  standing  by 
his  wigwam  near  the  sea,  and  that  a  great  whale  swam 
up  to  him  and  began  to  sing,  and  that  the  singing 
was  the  sweetest  he  had  ever  heard. 

Then  he  remend)ered  that  tlu;  giant  had  told  him 
he  would  think  of  him  in  seven  years ;  and  it  camo 
clearly  before  him  what  it  all  meant,  and  that  he  was 


S7'l  TUK  ALCONQUIN  LKaKNDi^. 

oivl<m<;'  to  li!iv(»  mn^icnl  ])<nv('r  givcMi  to  him,  and  (hat 
\\i>  sliodld  hccoiiic  .1.  MciimiKHurvHxoiK  Tliis  lie  told  Iiis 
wife,  who,  not  hciiij;-  learned  in  dailvHonu;  lore,  woidd 
fain  know  n\o!V  nearly  what  kind  oi  a  Ixnn^*  ho  ex- 
pected to  he,  and  whether  a  s[)irit  or  a  man,  good  or 
had  ;  whieh  was,  indeed,  not  easy  to  explain,  nor  is  it 
elearly  S(>t  down  in  the  chronicles  heyond  tiiis,  —  that, 
whatever  it  might  he,  it  was  all  foi-  tiu;  hest,  and  that 
(here  was  a  great  deal  of  magic  in  it. 

That  (lav  t!H>y  saw  a  great  shark  (Miiising  abont  in 
their  hay,  chasing  lish,  and  (his  (hey  hehl  for  an  evil 
omen.  Hut,  soon  af(er,  (hei'(^  canu^  trotting  towards 
them  over  the  sc^a  tht>  same  small  <log  who  had  heen 
their  pilot  from  (he  Land  of  (he  (iiants.  So  he,  full 
of  joy,  as  lu'fore,  at  seeing  them  and  (he  chihlren, 
wagged  his  (ail  and  danced  for  glee,  and  then  looked 
earncs(ly  at  the  man  as  if  for  some  message.  And  to 
him  (he  man  said,  "  It  is  well.  In  three  y(\ars'  time  I 
will  maki'  yon  a  visit.  1  will  h)ok  (o  (he  s(mthwest.'' 
ThiMi  (he  dog  licked  the  hands  and  (Ik;  ears  and  the 
eyes  of  (he  man,  an<l  went  home  as  before  over  tho 
sea,  rnnning  on  the  wat(>r. 

And  when  the  (hr(>e  years  had  jmssed  tin;  Indian 
entered  his  eanoe,  and,  paddling  without  fear,  found 
his  way  to  the  Land  of  the  (iiants.  lie  saw  the  wig- 
wams standing  on  the  beach ;  the  immense  eanoes  were 
drawn  up  on  (he  water's  edge  ;  from  afar  he  beheld 
the  old  gi<int  coming  down  to  welcome  him.  But  he 
was  alone.  And  when  he  had  been  welcomed,  and  was 
in  the  wigwam,  he  learned  that  all  the  sous  were  dead. 


TALl'LS  OF  MAaiC.  I'.TO 

Tlioy  li.'ul  (lied  tlirco  ycniH  Ix'foiJ!,  wlion  the  Hliurk,  tlio 
^I'ciit  soiccrcr,  li;ul  Ixcn  hccij. 

'I'licy  li:i(l  ;j;<>u<',  and  the  old  ni;in  liad  Imt  Hiif^onid  a 
little  l(Hi<;('r.  I  iiey  liud  inudo  tiu!  )n;t^i(;  (;haii^(!,  tliciy 
lijid  (l('j);u't('d,  Jiiul  Ik;  would  soon  join  tliem  m  liin  mnn. 
kiH(/(/(y/n.  I'mt  (!i<!  he  went  Ik;  would  leave  their 
great  inluMitnnce,  tlicir  ni;i;^ie,  to  tin;  man. 

Therewith  the  giant  Wrought  out  hin  Hon'n  ('loth(!,s, 
and  hade  tlie  Indian  ])ut  them  on.  Tiuly  thin  was  as 
if  he  had  heen  ashed  to  elotlu;  iiims(df  with  a  great 
house,  since  the  smallest  fold  in  them  would  have  hef^n 
to  him  as  a  eav(!rn.  lint  he  st(!])[)ed  in,  and  as  he  did 
this  h(!  ros(»  to  gi'(!at  h\/.v.  ;  he  filled  out  the  garnuMits 
till  they  fitted  ;  he  was  a  giant,  of  (iiant-Laml.  With 
the  eh)thes  cauH;  the  wisdom,  the  m'feoulin,  the  mani- 
toii  ])ower  of  the  greatest  and  wisest  of  the  olden 
time.  He  was  indecid  y1AY///;//oo//,'i?s.s'oo,  and  had  at- 
tained to  the  Mystery. 

This  very  remarkable  and  evi(l(!ntly  ancient  tale  is 
one  of  that  kind  which  tlu;  keejx^rs  of  ti'ihe  chronicles 
among  th(;  ])agan  Indians  do  not  tell  to  tlu;  world, 
and  which  they  conceal  from  white  men.  It  is  not  a 
fragment,  nor  is  it  luiflnishcid,  as  some  readers  may 
suppose.  Its  plot  is  of  a  much  high<;r  nature  than  a 
novel,  which  ends  in  a  mai'riag(;.  To  an  Indian,  whose 
ideas  of  earthly  ha])i)iness  were;  not  in  money,  houses, 
and  lands,  personal  power  was  the  one  thing  to  be  most 
desired.  As  a  Passania(pu)ddy  said  once  to  me,  "  To 
be  rich  in  those  days  meant  to  be  a  great  hunter  and 


370  THE  ALdONQUTN  LEOEXDS. 

always  have  pleuty  of  meat  for  everybody/'  Ilcnco 
the  desire  to  be  great  and  strong,  to  be  able  to  cutice 
wild  animals,  to  run  like  the  wind,  to  be  crafty  in  all 
tilings,  esi)eeially  in  making  war  ;  hence  to  have  pro- 
phetic dreams.  All  of  this  was  to  be  attained  by  rnte- 
oulin,  or  magic.  The  highest  ambition  of  an  Indian 
was  to  become  a  Mcfjumoowcamo^  a  mystical  being, 
which  is  exi)laincd  dii'ferently  as  fairy,  fann,  sylvan 
deity,  bat  which  means  one  who  enjoys  all  the  high- 
est privileges  of  humanity  allied  to  the  supei-natural. 
This  is  what  the  hero  of  this  sCory  gets  by  favor  of 
the  giant. 

It  may  be  observed  that  in  this  tale  the  Indian 
cannot  explain  to  his  wife  what  he  nevertheless  per- 
fectly understands  ;  that  is,  the  exact  nature  of  a  J!e- 
gvmoowessoo.  The  giant,  by  speaking  of  his  own 
kingdom,  gives  the  true  key  of  the  whole  mystery.  He 
has  attained  magic  power  so  far  as  one  can  exercise 
it  in  this  life.  Like  Glooskap  he  can  be,  or  unlike 
him  prefers  to  be  habitually,  a  giant.  He  has  battled 
with  the  Chenoo  and  Kookwess ;  he  has,  like  Hercules, 
f ulfdled  his  mission ;  and  now  he  departs  for  his  own 
realm,  that  of  the  MeginnootneHSOo^  as  Arthur  went  to 
Fairy-Land,  as  Buddha  to  the  unknown  Nirvana,  — 
that  is,  to  something  beyond  the  conception  of  poet 
or  theosophist. 

I  suspect  that  the  period  of  seven  years,  and  again 
of  three  years,  had  been  em])loyed  by  the  Indian  in 
preparing  himself  by  penance  for  vi^trou/ui.  Tlio 
respect  of  the   Indians  for  the  number  scvc>7i    is  so 


TALES   OF  MAGIC.  377 

remarkable,  that  if  it  bo  tnio  that  Drtts  imprfrihus 
mimcris  (jaudct.,  they  are  in  that  respect,  at  least,  like 
deities.  Wlieiiever  i<cvciiov  a  white  bear's  skin  oeenrs 
in  these  tales,  there  always  lies  hidden  a  magical  mys- 
tery. 

It  is  not  the  least  remarkable  feature  of  this  tale 
that  it  abounds  in  that  quiet  small  humor  which  re- 
calls the  adventures  of  Captain  Lemuel  Gulliver. 
The  Indian,  lik(3  the  Norseman,  was  such  an  iinplivit 
believer  in  his  own  myths,  and  he  had  evolved  them 
so  entirely  from  himself  without  borrowing,  —  since 
we  may  regard  him  as  one  in  this  respect  with  the 
Eskimo,  —  that  no  human  characteristic  detracted 
from  the  dignity  of  the  Manitou. 

There  is  a  strong  suggestion  in  this  story  that  the 
giants  were  whales.  This  and  the  incident  of  their  in- 
habiting a  mysterious  country  beyond  the  sea  and  the 
fog  would  identify  them  with  the  enchanted  land  of 
the  Eskimo,  visited  by  the  Angakok  in  their  trances, 
and  by  others  in  kaijaks.  This  country  was  named 
Akllinek,  "  a  fabulous  land  beyond  the  sea."  The 
whole  story  of  Maluise,  the  man  who  traveled  to 
Akilinek,  is  in  every  detail  exti-emely  like  an  Indian 
tale.  (Kink,  page  1G9.)  It  has  also  a  Norse  affinity. 
Tlie  land  of  the  giants  was  supposed  by  both  Iceland- 
ers and  Indians  to  be  in  the  North  Atlantic.  There 
is  a  Norse  tale  of  a  man  c]uin<rod  to  a  whale  which 
indicates  a  common  origin  with  the  one  here  given. 

It  is  believed  tliat  tlie  rn^teovliti  can,  when  speak- 
ing, make  themselves  heard  to  whom  they  will,  at  any 


378  THE  AinONQUlN  LFJIENDS.' 

distance.  Thoy  can  confer  with  one  another  secretly 
when  miles  away,  or  niak(!  themselves  known  to  many. 
I  was  informed  by  an  Indian  in  all  faith  that  an  old 
witeh  who  died  in  18TG,  twelve  mih^s  from  i^leasant 
Point,  was  heard  to  speak  in  the  latter  i)lace  when  at 
her  last.  A  very  intelligent  Passama(|noddy  told  me 
that  when  Osalik  (Sarah)  Ilecjuin  died  he  himself 
heai'd  all  she  said,  tliongh  sixty-five  miles  distant.  I 
am  certain  that  he  finnly  believed  this.  This  woman 
died  a  strange  death,  for  she  was  fonnd  standing  nj), 
dead,  in  the  snow,  with  her  aims  extended  and 
"  hands  sticking  out."  It  is  generally  believed  that 
she  was  killed  by  other  m'teoulin. 

There  are  really  very  few  ideas  in  modern  mesmer- 
ism not  known  to  Eskimo  or  Indian  Shamans.  Clair- 
voyance is  called  by  the  Passamaquoddies  Meelah  hi 
give  he. 


GLINT-WAII-GNOUR    PES  SAUSMOK. 

N'loan  pes-sans,  niok  glint  ont-aven 

Glint  ont-aven,  nosh  nior-giin 

N'loan  scp-seess  syne-diic 

Mach-ak  wall  l(>-rle-born  harlo  kirk 

Pes-sank-wa  niorgiin  pa-zazen. 

Dout-tii  t'owall,  yn'  eke  ne-niess  comall 

Dow-dar  howsee  des  ge-clie-ne-wes  sknmp, 

Na-havak  dunko  to-awk  w'che-mon  wli'oak 

No-saw  yn-well  Mooen  nill 

Mask  d<a-ah  gasvank  la  me  la-tak-a-dea-oii 


TALES   OP  MAGIC.  379 

I)i-w;i  gndanir  Kiulunk-uh  dcii-on 
Glor-bii  di'fi-on  gloiu-de-nec 
Glint-wtih-gnour  jjcs  siiiisinok. 

THE  SONG  OF  THE  STARS. 

We  are  the  stars  which  sing, 
We  sing  with  our  light  ; 
We  are  the  birds  of  lire, 
AVo  fly  over  tlie  sky. 
Our  light  is  a  voice  ; 
We  make  a  road  for  spirits, 
For  the  spirits  to  pass  over. 
Among  Tis  are  three  hunters 
Who  chase  a  bear  ; 
Tliere  never  was  a  time 
When  they  were  not  hunting. 
We  look  down  on  the  mountains. 
This  is  the  Song  of  the  Stars. 


"Ahboohe  b'lo  maryna  Piel  to-marcess" 
We  poual  gee  yuaa 
Mar-yuon  corded  delo  son 
Ne  mom-cn  nute  magk  med-agon 
Ou-e-est  Molly  duse-al  ca-soo-son  nen. 

Tumbling  end  over  end,  goes  Piel  to  7«ercm, 

With  feathers  on  his  eyes. 

To  the  maple -sap  ridge  toe  are  going, 

Our  lunch  a  cod-fish  skin  ; 

One  est  Molly's  daughter  goes  with  us. 


The  Gypsies. 

Bv  CHARLES   C.  LELAND. 

Containing  accounts  of  tiie  Russian,  Austrian,  English, 
Welsh,  and  American  Gyi^sies;  together  with  Papers  on 
the  Gypsies  in  the  East,  Gypsy  Names  and  Family  Char- 
acteristics, the  Origin  of  the  Gypsies,  a  Gypsy  Magic 
Spell,  Shelta,  the  Tinker's  Talk  ;  beside  Gypsy  Stories 
in  Romany,  with  Translations.  In  one  volume,  crown 
8vo,  red  edges,  $2.00. 


From  the  Neio  York  Tribune. 

Mr.  Ixland  thoroughly  understands  the  love  of  the  gypsy  for  the 
free  and  picturesque  life  out-of-doors  ;  he  feels  it  too  ;  his  pages  glow 
with  it;  his  fragments  of  description  borrow  from  it  an  irresistible 
charm.  He  brings  therefore  to  the  writing  of  these  fascinating  chap- 
ters the  rare  qualifications  of  an  exquisite  sympathy  with  his  subject 
and  a  poetic  intuition  of  its  inner  character.  But  his  enthusiasm  is 
tempered  by  his  shrewdness,  and  saved  from  extravagance  by  his  keen 
sense  of  humor.  It  is  impossible  to  read  such  a  book  without  shar- 
ing the  author's  delight  in  the  c[ueer  and  not  over  reputable  but 
highly  romantic  company  to  which  it  introduces  us  ;  and  yet  it  is  a 
great  storehouse  of  serious  and  recondite  information. 

From  The  Independent  (^Neio  York). 

A  volume  beautiful  for  ty])e  and  paper,  fresh  and  full  with  the 
strange,  mysterious  history  of  the  race  of  which  it  treats.  It  abounds 
in  interesting  studies  of  the  language,  in  which  the  author  is  at  home, 
and  of  the  people.  His  sketches  embrace  experiences  among  gyi)sies 
of  different  nations,  —  Russian,  Austrian,  English,  Wehh,  and  An\cr- 
ican,  —  and  are  original  and  immensely  entertaining.  The  volume 
contains  a  number  of  excellent  gypsy  songs,  well  translated. 

From  The  Churchman  [Ne%o  York). 

The  book  is,  on  many  accounts,  both  valuable  and  fascinating,  and 
is  undoubtedly  the  fullest  and  most  reliable  account  of  the  gypsies 
ever  written. 


*#*  For  sale  by  all  Booksellers.     Sent  by  mail,  post-paid,  on  receipt 
of  price  by  the  Publishers, 


HOUGHTON,  MIFFLIN  &  CO.,  Boston,  Mass. 


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They  are  unique  in  many  respects.  Our  bleak  and  rocky  New 
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